Professor Layton and the Town of Cats
by Meisteri
Summary: Layton and Luke received a letter from a detective who claims that the people in that village have been turning into cats! And when Luke does something wrong, will he turn back to normal or will he remain as a cat forever? (Cover done by StardustDestiny, roleplayer of Kaito Kid) !May contain Angst, Hurt/Comfort!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello there! I apologize if any of the characters are OOC. I only arranged the rp of me and my friends in a site called Tinierme. I decided to make it into a fanfic so here it is! But first…**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Professor Layton and Co. Nor do I own the OCs here. They belong to their rightful role players. Now…On with the story!**

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><p>Chapter 1- A Letter<p>

Lizzy was walking through the town. She sighed. It was another day living in this curse. Day after day, more people turned into cats. "Will this curse ever end?" she asked herself. She continued walking through the town, trying to look for clues.

Lizzy hoped that this _'__Professor __Layton__'_ would come soon. She posted a letter to him two days ago, hoping that he would help her solve the case. She would never do this but…it was that or this curse would go on. She found out about Professor Layton in a newspaper where it said the he solved another mystery again. Lizzy soon reached the train station and waited there, hoping that this time, the Professor will come.

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Luke wandered around Gressenheller University, bored and out of his mind. "I wonder if we'll get a new case…I'm reduced to solving puzzles upon puzzles." He sighed, staring down at the floor.

Luke went out to the mailbox to see if Professor Layton had any mail or whatsoever. He opened the mailbox, reached in and pulled out some letters. "Let's see here…Something for Flora, a letter for the Professor, another letter for the Professor…" he mumbled, looking through the first three letters. "A letter from Mum and Dad for me…and…" he started and gasped. "A CASE!" Luke yelled running back to Professor Layton's office.

Layton was sitting in his office room, drinking tea. It seems to be a peaceful day…for now. He looked at the puzzle book on his table and decided to read some until the door slammed open. It was his blue-hatted apprentice, Luke. His apprentice closed the door shut and handed a letter to him. Luke took a deep breath and collapsed on the couch.

"I'll never run that far and fast in my whole life…" Luke muttered under his breath.

Layton opened the letter and read what was written:

_"Dear Professor Layton,_

_ I have heard about you in the paper and I was hoping that you would help me with this case. You see in my hometown in a week ago people started to turn into cats. Day after day more people are turning into cats. No matter what I do I can't solve this case alone. I need your help. In the letter I have given you the map to the town...but I need to know if you are really what you say you are. So I have made this puzzle in the map. I shall see you at the gates in 12 O'clock._

_ From,_

_ Elizabeth Stone."_

Enclosed with the letter was a map. And indeed, there was a puzzle in it. Layton had a small smile on his face and said, "My boy…It seems we have a case on our hands." It's been quite long since the last case they've solved.

Luke sat up and smiled. "Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!" he chirped. He was bouncing a little bit on the chair out of excitement. He noticed that he's been doing something childish and stopped, sitting up like a polite little gentleman. "Professor, what does the letter say?" he asked quickly.

"It seems that the villagers in that town are slowly turning into cats." Layton said and put down the envelope. He looked at the puzzle again. There were nine boxes. In each box was a town name. This is what the puzzle said.

"_The __red __dot __is __the __train __station __you __will __be __coming __from.__One __of __the __towns __listed __inside __the __boxes __is __where __you __need __to __go.__These __will __be __the __only __clues:_

_-Canolis has a lot of dogs._

_-The town you need to go to is connected to three other towns._

_-Someone just dropped a stone under me._

_I'm quite sure you would be able to solve this quickly, Professor, if you are a great puzzle solver like what they said."_

Luke glanced at the Professor then laughed. "You can't be serious, Professor!" he snickered, "That's almost impossible!" Luke hugged his sides and started gasping for air.

"Now Luke…"Layton started.

"I know, Professor. But…It just seems impossible." Luke said. He hugged his knees and stared up at the ceiling. His cheeks were a bit pink from laughing too hard and running around. He was exhausted and his sides ached.

Layton soon focused on the puzzle, not noticing that Luke's eyes were beginning to drop.

Luke yawned and stretched. "I'm sure the Professor wouldn't mind...if…I take…a small…nap…" he thought, lying back down again. He found himself a small blanket, big enough to cover him up and slipped off to sleep.

Layton soon solved the puzzle. He looked at his apprentice and chuckled when he found that the boy fell asleep. He packed some things they might need in his trunk. After he was done, he went to Luke and gently shook him awake. "Wake up, my boy. We have to leave now or else we might miss the train we're going to take. After all, a true gentleman always arrives on time." He said.

Luke opened his eyes slowly and rubbed them. He yawned. "Professor, may I sleep on the way there?" he whispered, continuing to yawn and stretch. "I'm awfully tired…"he said with a small smile on his face.

Layton nodded and smiled. "Of course, my boy. Your body would need the rest. Now come along. We don't want to keep them waiting, do we?" he said and adjusted his top hat.

Luke hopped off the couch. "Professor Layton, do I need to bring anything? As you once said, a true gentleman never comes unprepared!" he chirped with a smile, suddenly filled with energy again.

"Hmmm…"Layton thought. " I suppose you can bring your notebook along. You might be able to use it in gathering information." He said.

Luke nodded and searched for his notebook. He shuffled through some papers before finding what he needed. "Professor! I got them!" he said with a smile.

Layton smiled as well. _This __child__'__s __enthusiasm __sure __is __contagious,_he thought. "Good. Now let's go before we miss the train." He said and went out of the door.

Luke followed behind Layton. "This is going to be so much fun!" he chirped, "Let's go!"

The two then left and went to the train station in another new adventure…

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><p><strong>Reviews are loved (even bad ones)! Criticism is adored! And if you want to solve the puzzle, here is the picture:<strong>

********http:/(_)i41.(_)tinypic.(_)com/(_)2v2zkp1(_).jpg ** **(Sorry if the picture is too small... . I made it in Paint while thinking of a puzzle)****

**P.S. Remove the blanks and add another slash mark ( / -this one) after the (http:) ...And if you read the puzzle and looked at the picture..you'll find something funny XD **

**Always remember…A true gentleman never leaves a fanfic without reviewing it first!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm quite sorry that I didn't tell you how Lizzy looks like… . just be imaginative X3. For those who want to know the answer to the previous puzzle…It's Felinery! :3 Nyah~! Be creative and imagine what the characters look like X3! This will be quite confusing since the first part is the point of view of the villagers while the other is Layton's point of view. Oh yeah...no puzzles for this chapter X3**

**Anyway ****Chapter****2 ****is ****up! ****Enjoy! ****Disclaimer:****(._.)****I****'****m ****pretty ****sure ****you ****guys ****know ****I ****do ****not ****own ****Professor ****Layton ****or ****the ****OCs ****here.**

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><p>Chapter 2- Strange Things and a Train Ride<p>

Toshiro was up in his room, gazing out the window. His orange and white cat tail hung off his bed and moved gently from side to side. He sighed, and tugged at the strange necklace that he woke up wearing a few days ago. It wouldn't budge. Toshiro sighed."I wake up with this thing I can't pull off, and all this happens..."

The door creaked open. Toshiro directed his attention to the one who went to his room. He saw a grey cat and smiled slightly. "H-hi Mom…" he said and the grey cat jumped on his lap. He ran his hand on the cat's fur. The cat meowed and looked at Toshiro. "D-don't worry…I'll try to get to the bottom of this…"he muttered and continued petting the cat.

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Blythe entered into her parents' shop, shutting the door on several cats that had been following her home. Her mother was arranging a bouquet of flowers while her father was reading the newspaper. Unlike her, they haven't turned into cats...well, not yet, at least. She took a quick glance and saw the heading of the newspaper: "_London __Detective __solves __yet __another __Case!__"_

"No school?" her mother inquired, while arranging the flowers.

"They all turned into cats." Blythe replies.

"Good, then you can help me with this bouquet. I'm arranging it because it was said that a detective is coming to town." Her mother said.

"Is it that Layton guy?" Blythe asked. She's being hearing that name for the past few days.

"Yes, him. Hopefully, he'll help us with our…feline problem." Her father said, turning the page of the newspaper.

"You can deliver this bouquet to him when he arrives." Her mother said, looking at the perfectly arranged flowers.

Blythe groaned loudly. She turned dramatically on her heels, heading for her room. She stopped and glanced at her mother. "Oh and Mum?" she said.

"Yes, dear?" her mother asked.

"You're growing ears." Blythe stated.

"EEEKKK!" came out the high-pitched scream from her mother.

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Lizzy sighed as she saw more cats next to her. She was already at the train station, waiting for the arrival of the Professor. She took out her pocket watch and looked at the time yet again. She had been looking at it from time to time. It was something that was left behind when her father died a month ago.

"Eleven O'clock…Only one hour left until he comes." Lizzy muttered to herself and put the watch back to her pocket.

A newspaper flew to her feet due to the wind. Lizzy picked it up and looked at the headlines.

"London Detective solves another case, hmm? I guess this is Layton. He has quite the reputation…I hope he'll come here…Even though I could do this by myself…"she sighed and put the newspaper in a nearby trash bin. Lizzy took out her notes and read it, even though there were only a few clues there. She closed her notebook and continued waiting for him.

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Soon, Layton and Luke arrived at the train station just in time.

"Train to Felinery leaves in twenty minutes!" a man on the train hollered.

Luke stared, puzzled at the train. "Do we have tickets?" he whispered, worriedly.

Layton smiled. "Not to worry, my boy. They are right here." He said, pulling out two tickets from his pocket. He was able to buy it at the counter quickly since there were only a few people buying tickets, to his delight. He handed Luke his ticket and got his punched and accepted.

Luke smiled and handed his ticket to the ticket man. He took his ticket after it had been punched and accepted, following behind Layton. They waited in line to get into the train since a lot of people were going in it.

Meanwhile, a girl arrived at the station, panting. She looked around frantically, looking for something...or someone.

"Platform…Platform….Oh what Platform was it?" she asked herself in a worried tone. The girl caught sight of a grand train and started to smile. "That one!" she thought excitedly and ran towards it, standing behind a boy and a gentleman with a top hat, waiting to climb aboard.

Someone squeezed between Layton and Luke but they didn't mind. Once all of them got on, Layton and Luke disappeared into a train car. The man on the train shouted, "All aboard!"

The train soon started moving forward. "This is going to be so much fun, Professor!" Luke said, happily before lying down on one of the train seats.

The girl, who was behind the Professor, was the one who squeezed between them. She walked along the train's hallway and suddenly realized who she just passed. She sighed heavily.

"Not again…" she muttered.

As she tried looking for which train car had the Professor and Luke in it, a serving girl accidentally bumped her with the trolley.

"Whoa-!" was the only thing she was able to say.

"I have a feeling this will be quite an adventure, Luke." Layton said and sipped the tea he ordered a while ago. He heard a thump and looked at the door of their cart and saw a girl. Layton put his tea down and helped the girl up. "Are you alright?" he asked concerned.

Luke sat upright and stared in shock at the girl. "Are you hurt?" he asked quickly, before holding his head. "Ugh…My head hurts…I think I shouldn't have sat up too fast." He whispered.

The girl nodded. "I'm alright…" she said and smiled at the Professor. "T-thank you for your concern, Professor Layton." She said. She then looked at the boy in shock and remembered who he was from the newspaper articles. '_Luke__Triton!_' she thought. She felt her face heat up ever so slightly; She always had a bit of liking to him after she read of his gift of talking to animals.

"Are you quite sure you're okay? You're face is turning a bit red."Layton said. He wanted to ask the girl how she knew his name but thought that the girl might have read it from the newspaper.

"I….I-I'm okay." She managed to stutter.

Luke smiled weakly, still a bit dizzy from sitting up. "Well, I guess that's good. We can't have a lady like yourself to be hurt. Nor can I let any lady harmed!" he said, "Now…who might you be?"

Layton decided to drink his tea and let the children talk to each other.

"U-uhh…" she fidgeted with her fingers then held out her hand. She smiled bashfully. "Gracelyn Johnson, but you may call me, Gracie." She managed to look into his eyes as she said, "A pleasure to meet you."

"Luke Triton! Nice to meet you!" he said and grinned, shaking her hand. "I see you already know Professor Layton."

Gracie nodded, "Yes," then shook her head. "I-I mean no! I've only heard the amazing reports about him in the newspapers."

Luke stared at Gracie, puzzled. "Um... okay? You know you remind me of someone... I guess people's minds work like that..." he said.

"I visited Misthallery once, a few years ago," she pointed out. "I remember hearing Clark Triton was the mayor at the time. Perhaps you saw me around town, if you were there." She added with a smile.

Luke smiled, "I grew up there... but I don't quite think that's it..." he said, with a warm smile."You kind of remind me of Professor Layton's sweetheart! Silly huh?" he said with an innocent laugh.

For some reason, Gracie's cheeks flushed red. Perhaps for the reason that she was Claire's niece. "Hahaha, really?" she asked, her tone almost giving away her lie. "T-That's-" Then she stopped, not wanting to offend him. "Well not silly!" she frowned a little bit, trying not to offend him or give herself away. "It's, err... w-well..."

Luke tilted his head a little bit. "Hmm... well?" he urged. He could tell Gracie was holding back on something and it had piqued his interest. Now he just was trying to pick it out of her.

Layton looked at the sceneries outside, but was listening to their conversation. Now that Luke mentioned it…Gracie did look a lot like Claire.

"Uhm...It's purely a coincidence!" Gracie concluded. She looked at the Professor and saw him raising an eyebrow. She almost forgot that the Professor was here. Remembering that Professor Layton was here, she decided to try to make a swift exit.

"W-well, it was nice meeting you!" the words rushed out of her mouth. "I guess I'll head off now."

"Well, do take care, Miss Gracelyn. It was nice meeting you." Layton said and tipped his hat.

She turned to the Professor. "A pleasure to meet you, too, Professor." she said politely. Gracie turned to the door before glancing back at Luke sadly. '_He__'__s __too __curious__…_'she thought_._

Luke frowned, his attempts had failed miserably. "Well, see you around then Gracie..." he whispered, before falling onto his back and staring up at the ceiling. _'__Right __when __I __think __I __had __her __telling __me __something, __too..._' he thought, sourly.

Gracie went to the carriage next to them. She sat down in her seat, letting out her breath she didn't know she was holding. "This is going to be a long holiday…" she muttered as she looked out the window.

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><p><strong>Wow! This ended up longer than I expected…well, once again, REVIEWS ARE LOVED and CRITICISM IS ADORED! There would be a couple of puzzles appearing here and there so sharpen those minds and prepare yourselves for a new adventure! :P anyway, Chapter 3 will have to wait…<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you guys for the review! I really appreciate it :D Though I feel that my story-writing skills are getting a little bit rusty X3 Anyway…Here's Chapter 3! Hope you enjoy! And forgive me if the characters are OOC. And if the story gets a bit confusing...and if the story starts to get boring (._.) ^^;; Still no puzzle for this one… X3**

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><p>Chapter 3- Newcomers<p>

Blythe leaned back on her desk chair. While waiting, she searched the internet about this so-called '_Professor__Layton_'. She looked at the clock. '_11:50__am__…__The __train__'__s __about __to __arrive.'_She thought.

"Time to deliver that bouquet…" she muttered under her breath.

She quickly went out of her room, ran down the stairs and grabbed the bouquet. She saw her mother sobbing softly and her father comforting her. '_Geez __Mum__…__You __only __have __cat __ears ,__I __have __EARS __and __a __TAIL!__' _she thought_._

She hopped on her bike and started pedaling madly towards the train station.

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Lizzy was reading a Sherlock Holmes book to pass the time. She has always been a fan of old murder mystery books like Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Cristy books. She looked at her pocket watch again. "Hmm…The train will be here in five minutes, I see." She said and put a bookmark on the page she is and put the book away.

A little while later, Lizzy saw the train approaching. A smile appeared on her face as she waited for the top-hatted man, Professor Layton. "Let's see if you can solve this mystery…Layton…" she muttered under her breath.

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Luke sat patiently, looking out the window. The small town's station was now approaching. When the train stopped, it lurched forward, sending him to the ground. He let out a gasp as he hit the ground with a loud thud.

Layton immediately went to the boy's side. "Are you alright, my boy?"He asked.

"I'm fine, professor."Luke said as he rubbed his head. Luke gasped and looked at the window immediately."We're here, Professor! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" he chirped, running to the door and leaving without Professor Layton.

"Luke! Wait!" Layton shouted. There were a lot of people going out of the train so he lost sight of his apprentice. '_He __shouldn__'__t __be __running __around __a __place __he __isn__'t __familiar __with_.' He thought and tried to follow Luke in the immense crowd.

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Gracie was straightening out her clothes to look like she didn't fall. She was walking down the train's hallway towards the exit when the train suddenly stopped. She also heard a thud from the Professor's train cart. She stood up and heard the Professor talk. He seemed worried. '_Is __Luke __alright?__' _she thought, also worried.

She didn't have to think longer as Luke came running out of their train cart. She was going out of the nearest exit when a large woman holding a poor tiny pooch dressed up in clothes pressed her against the wall.

"Oof!" It felt like the wind was squeezed out of her…literally.

"Get out of my way, little girl!" the large woman screeched.

Gracie sighed in frustration and squeezed herself off the train. '_Gosh__…__What __a __large __woman__…'_ she thought as she got off. She blended well with the crowd, making it hard to be spotted by Layton or Luke. She looked around and saw a map of the town. She tried to make mental notes and remember the places.

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Lizzy soon saw a hyper boy, going off the train. She saw that the boy was looking around with a smile on his face. She went near him and asked, "Hello, boy. You seem excited, why so?"

Luke stared up at Lizzy. "It's because I'm on a special case!" he said with a large smile, "It's going to be super exciting!"

"Huh?" Lizzy responded, confused. "You're Professor Layton? You…look younger than I thought." She said, mistaking Luke for the Professor.

Luke gave her an irritated look. "I am NOT Professor Layton!" he snapped, a little bit more rudely than what it should have been.

Gracie was finished looking at the map and soon overheard someone objecting loudly. She looked over and saw Luke with a lady. She turned away. "Focus, Gracie…Focus." She told herself. She started walking to the town square, where a huge fountain with a statue of a cat in the middle.

Luke cleared his throat. "I'm Luke Triton," he said to the woman, "Apprentice No. 1!" he said, pointing his finger up.

"Well, sorry! It was just a misunderstanding!" Lizzy said and calmed herself down. "It's nice meeting you, Luke Triton. My name is Elizabeth Stone, but I prefer you call me Lizzy." She said. She looked around but there were no signs of the professor. "So where is the Professor? If you're here, then I'm sure he received my message."

"Nice to meet you, Lizzy! And about the Professor, he's still on the train!" he exclaimed. Luke was really excited now that he knew who sent the letter to Professor Layton. Professor Layton wasn't around so…he thought of gathering clues already. He whipped out his notebook, ready to take notes.

Lizzy looked at him curiously. For a kid his age, he sure is impressive. Being the Professor's apprentice, he must be really close to Layton. Her attention was called when the boy asked her something.

"I just want to know…Has anything strange been going on lately?" Luke asked, just like what the Professor would do.

"Well my letter did say that everyone has been turning into cats. I mean...just look around you. Have you seen many cats like this in a town! I think not." Lizzy told him.

Luke nodded and started to scribble down what Lizzy was saying. "Well... Misthallery was full of mice..." he whispered, "and I think there was only one cat... but he only helped with the puzzles."

"It was about a week ago now since it started. I have no clue what is going on. I thought I found something but ended up at square one yet again." Lizzy told him.

Luke continued jotting down notes, "Thank you for your time... now one last question. Do they speak English or do they meow? Like this?" he asked, before letting out a good life-like meow. He gave her a warm smile.

"They just meow. Nothing more." Lizzy told him. "But I got a question for you. Do you even know where you are going to start? You and the professor could stay at my house if you what. It is the least I can do." Lizzy asked him with a smile that no one could refuse.

Luke shrugged. "I have no idea where we are going start..." he whispered, before scribbling down that they just meow.

"Umm... I guess we can stay at your house..." he whispered. His eyes widen a little bit at a realization. He could go around town investigating and meet up with the Professor at Lizzy's house. "Yeah... I guess that can work! Thanks for your time!" he chirped, before skipping off into town. Professor Layton could find him later.

"What a strange boy." Lizzy said and smiled. She looked around and waited for the Professor to come. Her mind began drifting to an unknown horizon.

Professor Layton just got out of the train and sighed in relief that he finally got out. "Luke!" he called out. He was wondering where his apprentice went. He could get into a whole lot of trouble. He saw Lizzy and went up to her. He gently tapped her shoulder. "Excuse me, Ma'am…Have you seen a boy with a blue hat running around?" he asked.

Lizzy looked at the man. '_Brown __coat,__orange __turtleneck __shirt,__and __top __hat__…__.This __must __be...__'_ she thought. "Are you Layton?" she asked, completely ignoring his question.

Layton nodded. "Why yes Ma'am…I am him." He said politely. "Have you seen a little boy around here? Brown hair, Blue hat and sweater?" he asked, again.

"Oh, yes I have. Is there by any chance his name is Luke?" Lizzy said. "Oh how rude of me! Not introducing myself. I am Elizabeth Stone but please…I prefer to be called Lizzy. I was the one who sent the letter to you. I am ever so happy that you came, Professor." She said with a smile.

Layton smiled sweetly. "Not to worry, Lizzy. A true gentleman always helps a lady in need. It's quite a pleasure helping with a case and young lady such as yourself." he said, "And I must say, I haven't properly introduced myself yet, either. My name is Hershel Layton but I am known as Professor Layton, which I prefer to be called." He said and tipped his hat. "And yes, His name is Luke. Have you seen him?" he added.

Lizzy was about to say something when they heard some footsteps running towards them. They saw a blue haired girl with black cat ears and tail, holding a bouquet of flowers that almost lost most of its petals.

"Mr. Layton!" the girl shouted. She ran faster and suddenly trips, making the bouquet fly. "Ack!" she said, closing her eyes for the impact but nothing came. She opened her eyes and saw Lizzy holding her.

"You should be more careful, girl…or you might get hurt." Lizzy said as she let go of her.

Layton caught the bouquet and went near the girl. "Are you quite alright, Miss? You should be a lot more careful. "He said, still holding the bouquet.

"Yes, I'm fine." the girl said. She saw the bouquet in Layton's hand. "That's for you. My Mum made it." she said gruffly. She didn't want Layton to think that she was a silly little flower girl. "Hey, don't you have some kid with a blue hat following you around? I believe he was your apprentice." She said, looking around.

"Oh yes, I have seen Luke."Lizzy said, momentarily forgetting about the Professor's question. "He left to find some clues. I could help you find him, if you like." She said, looking at the professor.

"I could help as well!" the girl said, "I'm Blythe, by the way. You don't need to introduce yourself, Mr. Layton." she said and shook his hand.

"Thank you for the offer. It would be better if I had help. The more, the merrier, like they say. Now, we need to find him. Who knows what trouble he could get into…" Layton said, a weak laugh came from his mouth. He was indeed worried for his apprentice for both of them are just new to the place.

Blythe perked up. "I'll go and try to find him right away!"She said and dashed off to the town.

"I'll go and try to find him as well…"Lizzy said. She saw where Luke went and decided to go there.

Layton nodded and went into town as well. Something was telling him that something bad is going to happen…soon…

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><p><strong>That's it for chapter 3! There's a little bit of foreshadowing here and there but you'll find out soon. I'm sorry if the story is getting boring or if I do a lot of mistakes. Again REVIEWS ARE LOVED AND CRITICISM IS ADORED! :P Chapter 4 will be up soon :3 Nya~<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello again! Thank you again for those who reviewed! I'll try to keep uploading chapters every week…**

**Sanluris: Thank you...I'll remember that...Plus the puzzle was worth only 25/25 picarats since one of the clues gave the answer away XD. Hope you enjoy the rest of the story!**

**Anyway, Chapter 4 is here so enjoy! There will be a little bit of LukexOC here…X3 just saying…**

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><p>Chapter 4- Against the Rules<p>

Gracie was in the center of Felinery, sitting on a large fountain with a statue of a large cat. She was reading a book of notes and looked quite odd... considering she was one of the only humans around!

'_How__ many __people __turned__ into __cats, __anyways?__' _she thought as she saw another cat pass by her.

Meanwhile, Luke was wandering around town. "Where can I find clues?" he asked himself. He asked a couple of cats sometime ago but the only thing they said was that they just turned into cats. He looked around and saw a fountain with a giant cat on it. "Wow! A fountain!" Luke exclaimed as he ran towards it. He sat at the edge of it and played with the water with his hands, swinging his legs.

Gracie looked up from her book when she heard splashing. She turned and saw -only about a meter away from her- Luke. '_Is__ he__ following __me?_' she thought. Putting her book back into her bag, she stood up and went behind the boy.

"Luke! W-What are you doing here?" Gracie asked the blue-hatted boy.

Luke turned his head around and saw Gracie. "Oh, hi Gracie! I'm trying to gather clues but it's pretty hard when most of the peo—I mean cats, won't answer your questions." He said and smiled at the red-haired girl.

Gracie mentally smacked herself in the head. '_How__ can __I__ forget? __They __were __working __on__ a __case __here.__' _She thought. Not wanting to look rude, she smiled back. "O-oh…You're on a case, right?" she asked as she twiddled with her thumbs. She stood beside him awkwardly, not wanting to sit down if he didn't want her to.

Luke nodded and scooted over a little bit and patted the part of the fountain he was once sitting on, clearly inviting her to sit with him. "You can help if you want to!"he said.

Gracie's cheeks dusted a light shade of pink as she smiled and sat down. "Sure...I'd love to help..."she said.

An eerie silence passed between them and it was killing her…She didn't know what to say. She was too embarrassed. '_Say __something!__'_ Gracie thought, wanting to end the awkward silence.

Luke smiled at her then looked away. '_Time __to __say __something__ completely __out__ of __the __blue!__ Throw __them__ off, __make __the __silence __less __awkward!__' _he thought happily before opening his mouth and saying, "I love me some llamas…" He was starting to think that it made the silence more awkward when he heard Grace break into a fit of giggles.

"Me too!" she managed to say cheerfully. "But I feel sorry for the alpacas…"she tried to joke.

Luke laughed a little bit. "Those alpacas and those llamas... I can never tell the difference between the two..." he whispered, staring at the water again.

Gracie smiled and looked at the water too... "Me neither... but I don't mind. I like all animals anyway..." Then she saw a cat jump in-between them and meow at its own reflection. She giggled.

Luke looked at the cat and started to meow and talk to it. He started to kick off his shoes and socks and placed his feet in the water.

Gracie blinked, but smiled as he spoke to the cat. "You... can talk to animals?" she asked in a happy tone. Not a surprised one, for she knew the answer.

Luke nodded, happily. Still talking to the cat, yet still paying attention to the real world.

Gracie smiled sweetly and started to stroke the cat too, wishing she could join the conversation. "I wish I could understand what he was saying..." she whispered, both to herself and to Luke.

Luke smiled, "I could tell you that!" he said, happily. "He was just admiring himself in the water really... and just being a chatterbox!" he laughed.

Gracie smiled, but more of a distant one. "That's nice..." She seemed sad for some reason.

Luke smiled, still petting the cat. It meowed something and Luke meowed back, before turning to Gracie. "He's wondering what we're doing here..."

Gracie looked up to Luke, not realizing their faces were closer than expected... she was only 13, after all. She could forget things sometimes. "We're... talking to a cat sitting on a fountain." Then she smiled again.

Luke looked at Gracie, before pulling away. The cat meowed again except louder, Luke meowed something back faster. "Um... he says that doesn't answer his question..." he lied.

Gracie blinked, and her intuition told her that he was lying. "Are you sure?"

Luke turned scarlet. "Oh I'm sure!" he lied, again. What the cat really said was a swear word and not good to say around others or to just say it out loud, for that matter...

In a distance, Blythe slowed down and glanced around. Cats, more cats, even more cats... Boy with blue hat and redheaded girl sitting on fountain... "Blue hat? That must be him! What was his name again? Lewis?" she exclaimed. Things hadn't been this exciting in Felinery for a long time. Well, until everyone started turning into cats.

Gracie smiled, "Alright then." And she stood up, getting a notebook out of her little bag and started writing. She pushed her glasses up her small nose, looking an awful lot like Claire again. "Hm..."

Luke stared at Gracie again, "Are you sure I don't know you?" he asked, again. "You look an awful lot like Claire..." he whispered, pointing out what he assumed was the most obvious.

Gracie looked up from her notes, a few small blush marks on her cheeks again. "I-I'm positive, Luke!" she insisted, even though she was lying. "I would have remembered meeting you!" Then she blushed deeper as she realized what she said.

But of course she would have remembered meeting Luke...

Luke tilted his head; he was going to say something when he got interrupted by the cat.

"Merrrow!" the cat meowed, loudly.

"She is NOT lying!" Luke defended, before getting meowed at again. Luke gasped, "THAT WAS UNCALLED FOR!" he yelled.

Lizzy was not far from the fountain. She heard someone yell and immediately recognized his voice."Hmm...That must have been Luke. I never forget a voice in my life." Lizzy said and went to the fountain.

Gracie blinked and looked at Luke, then the cat, then back at Luke. "What did he say?" she asked, obviously offended and hurt at how the cat was accusing her of something.

Luke glared at the cat and shoved it off of him into the fountain water by accident. "Oops..." he whispered, before turning back to Gracie."He said that you were lying, and I said NO WAY..." he started, before smiling. "Then he said a reallllllyyy nasty word that I really shouldn't say!"

Gracie looked down, "Right..." she said. "Soo…" she was about to say something when a girl arrived.

Blythe ran towards the fountain. "Lewis!" she shouted as she arrived.

"Lewis?" Gracie asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion.

"Did you just call me, Lewis?" Luke asked, slowly. He gave her the strangest look.

"Oh sorry! I meant Luke!"Blythe apologized.

"How did you know my name?"Luke asked, confused.

"The professor was looking for you and I decided to help him. And here I am, able to find you. He might get here soon." Blythe said, looking triumphant.

Luke and Gracie's eyes widened at the mention of the professor. '_Oh __no!__I __haven__'__t __gathered __any __clues __yet!__' _Luke thought. Meanwhile, Gracie packed her things in her bag and stood up.

"I got to go now! Bye!" Gracie said and left immediately. She wasn't prepared to face up to Layton and ask about Claire. She needed more evidence. She turned around and waved goodbye.

Luke noticed Gracie had left him alone. "Wait! I thought you were going to help me!" he said. He was going to follow her until someone shouted at them. Blythe and Luke looked at where the voice came from and saw Lizzy.

"What are you doing in the fountain?" came the shout of Lizzy. She soon reached them.

'_Oh__ boy...Better__ get __ready __for __another __lecture..._' Blythe thought. "I found him first." She said at Lizzy. She wanted the detective to get mad at her instead. Lizzy was pretty scary when she gets angry.

"I do not care."Lizzy said and looked at Luke with a serious face. "What do you think you're doing, Luke? Weren't you going to gather clues for the Professor?"

"I was but I got tired and rested here. Is that so bad?" Luke said innocently. He didn't know why but he felt like he wanted to be rude all of a sudden. He splashed the water again with his feet.

"You are not allowed to be in the fountain at all times. The mayor...who is a cat has made the rules and I only follow them for him, after all it is my job." Lizzy said to Luke. She was starting to get frustrated with this boy.

"Don't worry about her. She's usually like that when someone breaks the rules. And sorry about the Lewis thing again." Blythe whispered,trying not to be heard by Lizzy."Oh yeah! I forgot! I'm Blythe Willow, resident smart aleck and detention getter." She smiled.

Luke frowned at Lizzy, "Why can't I be in the fountain?" he asked, sadly. Before looking over to Blythe and smiling and standing up. "I'm Luke Triton, um... apprentice number one and animal lover..." he said, quickly. He was more focused on getting away from Lizzy...far away...or maybe, getting her more angry.

"Because the mayor said so and I must make others follow these rules as well you know. I know that you are here to solve the case but still... You are in this town and you shall follow the town's rules." Lizzy said to Luke. "After all, I am a detective and I follow the law." Lizzy told him.

Blythe smiled at Luke. "I like cats. I think I'm the only one here who isn't too concerned about becoming one," she said, as she reached down and picked up a purring cat.

Luke frowned, fidgeting, as he tried to get a sock on one of his wet feet. Though it wouldn't slip on. '_Time __to __play __with __the __official's __mind_' , he thought smugly. "So I'm not allowed to do this?" he asked, throwing off his other sock and splashing in the water barefoot.

This ticked Lizzy off. "Stop that immediately!" Lizzy shouted and was quite angry with Luke.

"Ew, gross! The cats drink from there!" Blythe stared in disgust. This wasn't the Luke she read about in the articles...though she quite admired the way he defied Lizzy.

Luke laughed, before hopping out of there. "Problem officer?" he asked, smugly. He crossed his arms. "I've seen worse my dear Blythe..."

One of Lizzy's eyes twitched in anger. "Yes young man! I have sent you and the professor to help me solve this case, not to play around in a fountain; I will also have words with at other girl with you." Lizzy said and was talking about Gracie. That girl wasn't part of this. She shouldn't be here.

Gracie was already walking through town again,searching for clues. She did promise that she would help Luke. She came across the fountain once more. She spotted Luke and her eyes widened at his odd behavior.

"Luke...?" she said in disbelief. '_What__'__s __wrong __with __him?__ Usually, __he__'__s __trying __to __be __a __gentleman...Now __he__'__s __being __a __jerk...__'_ she thought. She looked around and saw that the Professor was not there yet and decided to approach them.

"Whoa... You could give me classes on insolence..." Blythe looked at Luke with a mixture of disapproval and admiration. "OK, we're officially friends." She smirked. She was surely going to like this boy.

Luke smiled, "Hey... I'm a kid... I have excuses to have fun... and besides what did Gracie do?" he asked, quickly trying to defend his friend. "She did NOTHING wrong! She's not at fault!"

"I'm just doing my job, young man. I know you are a kid but still that doesn't give you the chance to do what you like for what you think is 'fun'."Lizzy told Luke.

Luke smiled, smugly. He gave an innocent look. "I'm extremely sorry... I didn't mean it... I didn't know that playing in the fountain was illegal..." he apologized.

"Yeah, that girl wasn't doing anything Detective Stone!" Blythe chimed in. "Plus Luke didn't really know any better. He IS new to the town after all."

Gracie walked over closer to them. "C-Can I help... officer?" Her voice was quiet, shy of being in also thought of anything she did wrong. She didn't play in the fountain so what was it? She decided to let that slip and focused on the situation at hand.

"...Since you ARE new, I'll just give you a warning...but you better start solving this case. And if I see you doing more trouble then it shall be different. And everything is fine now, girl. I have to get on with this case. Good day." Lizzy said and left the group.

Luke watched as Lizzy walked away. "I know it's not gentleman-like to cause trouble, but I do want to see what happens if I get into more trouble..." he muttered, a smirk on his face. He knew this wasn't right and started to wonder why he was being rude.

Gracie looked at her shoes, her feet turned in showing her shyness. "I guess I'll just... go again."

"So! What should we do first to solve this case?" Blythe got right down to business. "Oh and don't worry. Detective Stone will come around. You just injured her pride. She'll cool off. I've got into trouble with her enough times to know that."

Luke smiled, weakly. He wasn't quite sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing to injure a detective's pride. He slunk back a little bit, "Um... I'm not the Professor or anything but I assume we ask around town for now... gather clues..." he said the thing he and the Professor do whenever there's a mystery.

Gracie looked up at them, angry of being ignored. "Well I've already found out a lot..." she mumbled to herself before walking away."And I'll find out a lot more, too..." She has been asking a few of the remaining humans in this village. She found it interesting that the some people turned into cats in 48 hours the least. And she was going to gather some more facts...

"Well then let's get asking!" Blythe is surprisingly cheerful for once. Mysteries generally make her happy.

Luke looked back at Gracie then at Blythe. "I'll be right back stay..." he whispered, before latching onto the back of Gracie's shirt collar."Oh no you don't... You need to help us!" he yelled.

Gracie turned around, slapping his hand away. "Don't touch me! Didn't the Professor every tell you not to grab anyone like that?" She glared at him, unimpressed by his behavior.

Blythe looked at Luke. "I think that girl was a bit put off by you ignoring her. Her name's Gracie, right? Are you two good friends? And whatever happened to Layton?"

Luke's hand retreated. "Hey! You don't want to be ignored do you!" he asked, bitterly before walking away. "We USED to be..." he hissed, bitterly . He then looked around and noticed that the Professor wasn't there yet...Strange...Usually, he's the first to find him. "I don't know..." he muttered, looking at the ground.

"Look, both of you calm down. Gracie we didn't mean to ignore you. Sorry. Luke, don't be so hotheaded and dramatic. Let's just focus and maybe we can find some clues." Blythe said as she tried to defuse the drama.

Gracie glared at him once again before storming away. "And to think I was his friend!" She blushed, and was angry at herself. '_To__ think __I__ even...__admired __him!_' she thought.

Luke nodded. "Yes mother..." he whispered, before gaining his childish personality again."Come on let's go!" he cheered, before racing off. He was glad that he gained his childishness again, but a bit guilty about ignoring and making Gracie mad. He'll try to apologize later.

"Those two have tempers worse than mine..." Blythe muttered before following Luke."Hey! Wait up!" she shouted.

In an alleyway near the fountain, the Professor was there and saw the whole scene. He was trying to gather clues as well and ended up there. He was puzzled by the weird behavior of his apprentice. He sighed. '_What__ has __gotten __into __that __boy?__'_ he thought as he approached the fountain. He looked at his reflection in the water and thought, '_Why __was __it __against __the __rules __to __go __in __the __fountain?__'__._

He thought of a theory but disregarded it. He needed more information to prove it. '_I__ need__ to __see __if __Luke __has __gathered __any __clues __yet.__'_ He thought as he started to search for Luke again...

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><p><strong>Whew! This seems to be longest chapter...for now...Anyway, you guys know what to do! X3 REVIEWS ARE LOVED AND CRITICISM IS ADORED! Chapter 5 will take some time but stay tuned! Things will get a liitle bit interesting... And there seems to be a lot of questions in Layton's mind...Will they be answered? And why was Luke acting like that? Find out in the later chapters XD<br>**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the long wait…Busy with all the events since I do have a life outside the internet X3 (not that I'm saying that I'm the only one with a life outside the internet…I'm sure you all do) and because we are already in the third rp of these series. (Actually…This is a trilogy. So I still have to type a lot…and finish this.) Anyway, I do hope you enjoy this.**

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><p>Chapter 5- Clues and…Cat Ears?<p>

Blythe was right behind Luke, trying to catch up with him. "I told you...WAIT UP!" she shouted as she ran towards Luke again.

Luke laughed as they ran down the road. He stopped momentarily as he heard a cat meowing in an alleyway.

"Ohhh!" he gasped, before rushing down and meowing to it.

Blythe went beside Luke and looked at him weirdly. "Sure…Start talking to a random cat…BECAUSE THAT'S PERFECTLY NORMAL!" she said, wondering if this boy is mentally stable.

Luke crouched down and started to pet the cat, meowing and talking to it. The cat would look at him from time to time and respond. He smiled childishly.

"Have you already lost your mind?" Blythe voiced out her thoughts. She was getting exasperated with his new found friend.

Luke looked at his new friend and shook his head. "I do this often…"he whispered, stroking the cat.

"Do what often? Go crazy!" Blythe exclaimed.

Luke shook his head again. "I talk to animals…I can understand them…And this might help us in our investigation." He said then meowed at the cat.

"What's your feline friend saying, then?" Blythe asked, suddenly intrigued. She leaned against the brick wall of the alley.

Luke meowed, and got a response. "Um... He is asking if I'm turning into a cat..." he said, before meowing back at the cat. "…And he can't remember how he turned into a cat..."

"Go on..." Blythe knelt down besides Luke. Surely, they might be able to discover something.

Luke continued to meow questions, and getting answers. "He said that he wasn't following the laws... and something strange happened..." he said, intrigued as well. What rule did he break, anyway? He voiced out the question to the cat but it was only talking about how cool it is to break the rules and being a bad boy.

Luke yawned, getting bored from the tall tale stories of the cat. "Well, this cat certainly isn't my cup of tea!" he said as he stood up and stretched. He began to walk away.

"Wait!" Blythe went up to Luke. "Maybe that cat was a clue! I wonder what he meant about not following laws..."

Silently, someone was watching them the whole time. "This could prove to be a problem…No matter…No one would understand him soon…" the person said and smirked. Whoever the person was turned and left the scene without being detected.

Luke looked behind him and smiled at Blythe, "I do wonder what he was talking about not following the laws.." he whispered, "Should we try to find out?" he said with a smirk.

Toshiro was walking down the street near the alleyway. He was trying to remove the necklace again. "Ugh…" he sighed in frustration, his tail swishing back and forth. He was too preoccupied with the necklace that he bumped into Luke. "Oh sorry…"he muttered looking up at Luke.

"It's quite alright…"Luke said then looked the boy in front of him. "Oh…umm...hello…" he said as he looked strangely at the boy's orange cat ears and orange tail with a white tip.

"Toshiro! What are you doing here?" Blythe asked, surprised to see that her classmate had cat ears and tail as well.

"O-oh…Sorry if my looks seem strange to you…" Toshiro replied quietly. He sighed and let go of the necklace. He looked at Blythe. "Nothing really… I've been trying to get this troublesome thing off all day." He said, pointing at the strange necklace.

Soon, Gracie arrived to where Luke and Blythe were. She was following a grey cat that had a red scarf around its neck. She saw where the cat was taking her. "Oh no…Not HIM again…"she thought bitterly.

Blythe looked at the girl and recognized her as the girl from before. "Hi again…I don't think we were formally introduced. I'm Blythe Willow. The new kid's Toshiro. And Luke…"she said and shoved Luke toward Gracie. "Apologize to her."

Luke gave a small glare at Blythe before turning to Gracie, and turning scarlet. "I-I-I'm sorry..." he whispered, giving her a quick hug, before pulling away and acting like he hadn't JUST hugged her.

Gracie blushed herself, before stuttering "T-Thank you, Luke..."

The cat meowed and Gracie was brought back. "G-Gracelyn Johnson." Then she smiled, "Pleasure to meet you both!"

Luke walked back to Blythe, before taking out his notebook and pencil and was making a small sketch of the strange necklace Toshiro was wearing.

Toshiro looked at Luke."What're you doing...?"

Blythe smirked. "I knew you two would make up." She said and felt triumphant. Something vibrated in Blythe's pocket and she whipped out a cellphone. She answered it and sighed as she hung up. "Ugh…It's my mom…" she groaned. "I have to go home now since it's getting late. I'll meet up with you guys tomorrow. Toshiro, you're part of the mystery solving team. You too, Gracie. Toodles everyone!" she said and ran off.

Toshiro and Gracie blinked as they watched Blythe run away. They then looked up at the sky and noticed that it was getting dark.

Luke continued to scribble notes and examining Toshiro. "To answer your question, I'm taking down notes…What does it look like?" he said, a little rudely than expected. "Well, I have to go. The Professor might be looking for me already…"he announced and put his notebook back into his bag.

"Well, I should be going to an inn now…"Gracie muttered and walked away.

"Well…Bye then…"Toshiro muttered back and continued walking.

Luke tipped his hat a little and left as well. He remembered that he had to go to Lizzy's house to meet up with the Professor. He felt a bit anxious. He did make Detective Stone angry…Maybe he could apologize? He thought as he wandered around town. He was thinking on how to apologize when he bumped into Lizzy. He looked up and was a bit shocked to see her. Off all the people he can bump into, why her? Why not the Professor? But he guessed he spoke too soon when he heard a familiar voice.

"Luke, my boy!" Layton said as he saw the boy. A wave of relief washed over the Professor. He couldn't help but worry for the boy's sake. "Where on earth have you been?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, Detective Stone! I'll never break the rules again! "Luke blurted out. He turned to Layton. "I'm sorry too, Professor. For running off like that…but I found some new friends and did a little investigation with them on our own." He whispered.

Lizzy turned to the boy. "It's quite alright now…"she said and went to whisper to Luke's ear. "You don't want to get hurt after all, do you?" she said in a menacing tone.

"It's alright, Luke…"Layton said as he looked at Lizzy, confused. He knew Lizzy saw Luke and that Luke broke the rule of not going in the fountain, but she doesn't know that he knows this. But why didn't Lizzy mention to him that she saw Luke?

Lizzy saw the confused face of Layton and decided to talk. "I caught him in the fountain some hours ago. It was against the rules to go in there." She explained.

Layton nodded. He suddenly had an unnerving feeling about the fountain...and about Lizzy. He decided that he should ask about the fountain first. "May I ask why it is forbidden to do it? I'm quite curious about it." he said.

"The mayor told me so…And I am a follower of the rules." Lizzy answered.

Luke bit his palm as he looked up at Layton. It was itchy but he was starting to wonder why he bit his palm instead of just scratching it. He stopped and took out his notebook. "Look, Professor! Here are all the clues we found…or at least we think they're important to be clues…"he said, handing his notebook to Layton. He went back to biting his palm.

"I see...Thank you, Lizzy." he said and tipped his hat. He then turned to Luke. Before he took the notebook, he asked "Luke, why are you biting your palm?"

Luke stared down, "Well... I have no idea really..." he whispered, staring at the bite marks in his palm.

Lizzy looked at the notebook, then at Luke. She decided to stay silent and speak when needed.

Layton flipped through the pages and saw some notes scribbled down. He read some until he came to a sketch. "Is this a clue as well? And did you find any clues other than this?" he asked the boy. It was peculiar. Maybe it was an item that caught the boy's attention?

Luke nodded, enthusiastically. "Yep! It was a sketch of a strange necklace worn by some kid named Toshiro and a cat said he realized strange changes happened when he interfered with the law..."

"Hmm... I think were slowly making progress, my boy." Layton said and smiled.

"You two need a place to stay right?" Lizzy suddenly interjected. It seems she could use these clues as well. "I know I suggested that you stay at my place but I remembered that my house didn't have any other rooms left. But there is an inn here and I'll be glad to show it to you." She said.

Layton looked at Lizzy and smiled. "That would be delightful. We do need some rest. Right, my boy?" he said.

Luke nodded, still examining his palm. He was still wondering why he bit it in the first place. He sighed. "Yes, Professor..."

"Follow me then." Lizzy said and started to walk to where the inn is.

Luke followed Lizzy, staying closer to Layton and staying further away from Lizzy.

Layton is getting a bit worried at Luke's behavior. "Is something wrong, Luke?" he asked.

"Nothing really…Just feeling a bit guilty for rushing off…"Luke replied. It wasn't the exact truth since he also felt something…weird…

"Here we are." Lizzy announced as they stop in front of an inn. It looked a bit old but still in good condition. "Sorry if it's quite run-down. It was already here even before I was born so the building is quite old."

"It's alright, my boy. We learn from our mistakes." Layton said and as he smiled at his apprentice. Sometimes, this blue-hatted boy thinks too much. He then turned to Lizzy. "It's quite fine, actually. Thank you for your help." he said and tipped his hat.

"Well I am going to retire now. Good day to you both." Lizzy smiled and left.

"Good day to you as well." Layton said to Lizzy before she got too far and went inside the inn.

Luke bowed to Lizzy and headed inside. "I think I really made her mad Professor..." he whispered, staring down at the ground."May I go out for a little while...? I just really want to see the lights and how Felinery looks like at night."

Layton looked at his apprentice. "Just apologize to her. A true gentleman apologizes for his mistakes. "He said. His expression became worried for a second. "Of course, my boy. But please do be careful. You're making me worry a lot."

Luke nodded, before heading out. "I'll be back soon..." he said, "I think…"he muttered the last part. When he got out, he wandered over to the fountain and looked at the water. It shimmered with an odd color of blue. He didn't really understand what drew him to this particular spot but something did.

Layton went to the counter where a lady with a cat tail is. "Excuse me, is there any room available for two?" he asked.

The receptionist smiled. "Of course. Right this way." she said and led the way. Layton followed behind carrying his trunk and Luke's notebook.

Layton reached the room and thanked the receptionist. He then went inside and put down their things. He opened a lamp and sat on a chair next to the window. He flipped through the pages of Luke's notebook as he waited for him to come back.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Luke placed his hand in the water, and played around with it. He splashed it on the stone edging and sometimes on his clothing and face. "Ah... very... refreshing..." he whispered. He noticed it was getting late. He pulled himself away from the fountain and went to the inn. He asked the receptionist where the man with the top hat was and she told him their room. He thanked the lady and went to the right room number.

Before he knocked on the door, he wondered if it was noticeable that he played in the fountain. He looked down at his sweater. It was wet and his face is still a bit wet also. _Yeah, it is noticeable…_he thought sourly as he knocked on the door.

Layton heard the knock and put down the notebook. He opened the door only to see a slightly wet Luke. "My boy! What on earth have you been doing? Let's get you changed. You'll catch a cold if you don't." he said.

Luke frowned, not going to argue with the Professor. "I was playing in the fountain... the water was REALLY cool looking!" he explained a little bit.

"Hmmm..."Layton thought. "It would be better if you don't go near that fountain again, Luke. There's something suspicious about it." he said."Let's get you change." he added and took out some extra clothes from his trunk. Lucky, he came prepared for any mishaps.

Luke frowned, "But Professor! You've GOT to see the fountain!" he cried, before taking out the set of clothing and disappearing to go change. "It's different!" he yelled from the bathroom.

Luke walked out of the bathroom, all changed and dry. "Is this alright Professor Layton?" he asked, quietly. "Everything I wear looks awfully the same..." he complained a little bit.

"Hmmm...We'll just see if we can get you some other clothes, if you want that. And I know the fountain is different. That's why I'm going to investigate about it tomorrow." Layton said.

Luke shook his head, "The clothes are fine now…" he said. He was getting restless. "I wonder what's wrong with it... but you should REALLY see it at night... it glows! In the morning it looks like plain old water! Why not investigate it now, Professor?" he explained excited. He also wanted to go back to the fountain.

"It...glows?" Layton asked. It seems this fountain is really interesting. "Luke, that fountain may be a clue."

Luke nodded, enthusiastically. "Yeah! Let's go!" he cheered, rushing out the door and down the steps. "To the fountain!"

Layton shook his head and smiled. Luke really is a child full of energy. Layton then went out of their room and followed Luke outside.

Luke led the way to the fountain and pointed to the water in it when they finally got there. "See? See?" he said, happily.

The top-hatted man examined the water."It seems you are right, Luke. The water seems to be glowing." Layton said.

Luke shrugged, still looking at the fountain. He took out his notebook and sat on the edge of the fountain and started to take notes, though with the dark all around, his normally neat writing was now a messy untidy scrawl.

"Luke, you might go blind if you write in the dark." Layton said. He looked at fountain's water again and decided to dip his finger in the water. It was surprisingly refreshing and cool to the touch.

Luke sighed, and put away the notebook. "Yes sir..." he whispered, before rolling up a clean sweater sleeve, and dunked his hand into the fountain.

Layton rolled up his sleeve a bit as well and proceeded to dip his hand in the water. Then, it dawned on him. He took out his hand quickly from the water. "Luke, the water in the fountain is what turned these people into cats." he said in a grave expression. Perhaps, this is the reason why people are forbidden to go in it.

Luke's pupils shrunk. "A-Are you sure about that Professor?" he asked, worriedly. He started to have a mini heart attack; he waded in the water a lot and splashed it on his face and clothes. "Um...I don't feel so good Professor..."

Layton was worried about Luke now. "I'm not that sure yet, Luke. But I have a feeling that it's true." he said. Luke had already came in contact with the water several times already. He only got his hand wet but still wasn't sure if that was enough to make him into a cat, as well.

Luke held his head. "I uh... feel dizzy..." he whispered, his attention was cut short. He truly couldn't see in front of him without feeling queasy. "Professor... can we go back to the inn please?"

"Of course, my boy." Layton said. "Can you walk? You seem to be quite dizzy."

Luke shook his head slowly. "I don't think I can..." he whispered, but he didn't want to be carried back. So, he tried standing up."Maybe I can..." he said a little bit more cheerful. "Well let's go..." he said again, starting to do a little speed walk, though he was going all over the place, he couldn't even walk the straightest of lines.

Layton looked at his apprentice with worried eyes and held unto his apprentice's shoulder to prevent him from tripping over. Soon, they reached the inn and went inside their room. "Luke, you should rest. Perhaps you won't feel dizzy after a quick nap." he said. He noticed something about Luke's hat. "I hope we find a way how to reverse the effect and solve this mystery." Layton thought.

Luke plopped down on the bed. "I completely agree..." he sighed, staring ahead at the ceiling. He yawned, and stretched. "I think I really want to sleep..." he whispered, not even bothering to change into pajamas. But, he found out that he couldn't fall asleep, as he closed his eyes and tried to, but it was utterly useless.

Layton sat on a chair near the window beside where Luke's bed. "Couldn't sleep, my boy?" he asked as he saw his apprentice's eyes still wide open.

Luke shook his head. "I don't think it's all that possible really...I just can't sleep..." he whispered.

"That's not good. You need to rest."Layton said. Once again, he looked at Luke's hat. Something was forming a bump on it...two bumps to be exact. He decided to ignore it for the mean time, as he dreaded that it was finally happening.

Luke rubbed his eyes before turning around and falling face first into the pillow. He felt very tired all of a sudden. "Good night Professor..." he said, with a small yawn. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.

"Goodnight Luke."Layton said and went to his bed as well. He might have not noticed but he licked his palm just before he lied down...

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><p><strong>Well…this is a lot longer than Chapter 4…To my surprise.(I actually thought that chapter 4 would be the longest but who knows?) Anyway, REVIEWS ARE LOVED and CRITICISM IS ADORED. Chapter 6 will take a lot of time so I hope you stay tuned…Nya~ And something's not right with this fanfic...It's a bit of a twist :P *spoiler* If you haven't noticed Gracie...better check on her again... :3<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**Oh god! I'm sorry for not updating for months . This chapter was originally longer but got deleted so I had to type it all over again. The problem was…I was treated like a teacher, checking test papers, essays, homework and recording the grades in the class record…and I'm not even a teacher yet! Anyway, this is chapter 6 and I hope you enjoy it!**

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><p>Chapter 6- Dreams, Investigations and Transformations<p>

_A fire…There was a fire. Layton was inside a room and in front of him was a man dressed in white. The man was also wearing a white top hat with a blue band. The fire was spreading quickly and was starting to surround them. Outside, sirens from both fire trucks and police cars filled the air along with the smoke. The man was alarmed by this and looked at Layton. Strangely, he couldn't make out the face. _

"_Layton!" The man shouted and pushed him out the window. As Layton fell, he saw a glimpse of the white top-hatted man before he was consumed by the fire. _

Layton woke up, trying to catch his breath. He was sweating a little bit because of a dream. "It's just a dream…"he told himself, but he knew far too well that it wasn't just a dream. He sighed and shook his head. He went out of bed and put on his coat and shoes. He looked at his apprentice who was sleeping peacefully.

_Better not wake him up…_ he thought as he left the inn. He felt that he wanted to go check out the fountain again so he started to head there. As soon as he went out of the inn though, he saw a boy with orange cat ears and an orange tail with a white tip. The boy seemed to be in pain so he decided to approach him…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

After Luke and the others had left Toshiro, he started to wander around town. He completely lost track of time. "I guess I should get home..."He sighed, staring down at the necklace in dismay."I hope this problem gets fixed soon-"He stopped walking and stopped near the inn, and gazed at his necklace. It was glowing. He felt a sharp pain in his face. He soon saw the Professor right in front of him.

"Is there something wrong?" came the Professor's worried voice.

"I…I think I'm getting whiskers…" Toshiro replied as he tried to ignore the stinging sensation on his cheek and the hotness of his face.

Layton knew he can do nothing about this unless he is able to solve the mystery. "I'm quite sorry…but we'll do all what it takes to solve this mystery quickly." He said. He then noticed the necklace of the boy. It looked a lot like the necklace Luke sketched in the notebook. "Are you, by any chance, Toshiro?" Layton asked.

Toshiro winced, but the pain seemed to fade away as short catlike whiskers sprouted from his cheeks."Y...yes...I am. How did you know my name?"

"Luke told me that a boy named Toshiro had a strange necklace just like that."Layton said and pointed at his Toshiro's necklace. "May I ask how you got it?"

"Oh...well..."Toshiro looked at his necklace."When I woke up...it was on me...The same day all this happened...I can't get it off, either."

"I see…Do you know anything about the fountain? I'm quite curious about it…" Layton asked. He was trying to put all the puzzle pieces together but something doesn't quite add up. What was Toshiro's necklace for, if the people turned into cats just by getting wet by the fountain's water?

"No, not much, really. But I remember I was there the day before this necklace was stuck on me."Toshiro replied.

"I see...Thank you for answering." Layton said and tipped his hat. He looked up at the sky. It was still night time and he had enough time to check the fountain again. "I have to go now. Goodbye, Toshiro." he said and was about to leave when the boy asked something.

"Wait….May I ask for your name? You look familiar but I forgot your name…" Toshiro asked and smiled shyly.

The top-hatted man smiled at the boy. "It's Professor Layton but you may call me Professor." he answered.

"Pleasure to meet you, Professor Layton."Toshiro smiled shyly."U-uh...If you need any help...I can...I-if you want my help that is..."

He smiled at Toshiro. "Thank you for the offer. I'll remember that." he said and tipped his hat once more.

"Goodbye, Professor…"the boy said and waved a little.

Layton smiled at Toshiro before he left and headed to the fountain. His expression was change to a face of determination. He felt like he missed something…something important about the fountain.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Layton arrived at the fountain and looked around it. He looked at the water, careful not to get himself wet. Still, he didn't find any leads. He sighed. He felt that he's forgetting something when he looked up and remembered he hadn't checked the statue yet. He looked at it and noticed something missing on its neck. Layton suddenly had a realization. _Toshiro's necklace…A missing piece from the statue…The strange effects of the fountain's water…_Layton thought as he tried to piece together the mystery. Now, he had an idea of how it could be solved…but who removed the necklace and put it on Toshiro in the first place?

He decided to take a walk while thinking. Soon, he felt tired and found a perfect place to rest, under a tree with a good view of the starry night sky. He closed his eyes as he leaned against the trunk, falling into a deep sleep; A memory of Claire met him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Gracie was sitting on a bench nearby the fountain. "Okay... so the cats who transformed first were children. The first of which were children illegally playing in the fountain." She was too absorbed in her notes that she only caught a small glimpse of the Professor before he left. She stood up and gaped. She lost her chance to ask him about Claire…again! She mentally smacked herself and though, _Stupid! There goes my chance to ask him about her…and the message she left. I'll just ask next time I see him._

Meanwhile back in the inn, Luke had just woken up and was no longer tired. He yawned and stretched. "Professor? Where are you?" he whispered, before hopping out of bed and slipping on his shoes. He really wanted to leave but Professor Layton wouldn't like that. But wait, where is the Professor? He was alone in the room. He looked around for something, a note…or a puzzle…or anything! When he found none, he decided to go out and check the fountain. Maybe, he'll see the Professor on the way there.

Soon, he arrived at the fountain, still no sign of the Professor. But he did see a certain red-headed girl. "Hi Gracie!" he said as he showed up meekly behind Gracie. He saw that she was petting a cat and he started to pet it as well.

Gracie squeaked in surprised. "Oh, h-hi Luke." She said in response.

"How are you this…" Luke said and looked up at the sky, "…night?" he half-asked Gracie, half-asked himself. How long did he sleep? It must have been just a cat nap if it was still night.

"I'm alright…Thanks for asking…"Gracie said as she petted the cat. The cat suddenly hissed at Luke, making them both pull back their hands. It looked at Luke with anger in its eyes.

Blythe hopped over her backyard fence. She had sneaked out of her house as she couldn't sleep at all. She headed to the fountain and saw Luke and Gracie there again. "What…is that their special hang out place or something?" She muttered to herself. "Hi you two!" she chirped. She has always been a night owl than an early bird.

"Oh hello there, Blythe." Both responded. The cat jumped off of Gracie's lap. It kept on hissing at Luke.

Blythe noticed the cat. "What's wrong?" she asked the cat. In answer, it jumped to the ledge of the fountain. Unto the cat statue…and jumped to Luke's head.

"Ahhhh!"Luke shouted as he covered his face, expecting to be scratched all over. But the cat only took his hat….and revealed two brown cat ears growing out of his head…

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><p><strong>Do I have to say it? Anyway, I'm sure you all know that Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored. Hope you can wait for chapter 7 since I'm going camping ^^;; eheheheh…gomenasai… (_ _")<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's Chapter 7! I finished it faster that I thought I could. X3 Enjoy!**

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><p>Chapter 7- More Problems Arise<p>

"Uh, Luke? Did you know that you're growing cat ears?" Gracie said as she backed away and looked at Luke's head. She couldn't believe it. Cat ears…on Luke's head!

"And you're not even a villager!" Blythe exclaimed, backing away due to shock and surprise.

Luke patted his head and felt the cat ears to its tips. He gulped and went a bit pale. "I…I think I'm going to be sick…"Luke muttered, putting his hand on his forehead.

Blythe was really worried. "We should go get the Professor. I'll go get him!" she shouted and ran off. She didn't really mind it if she turned into a cat but it seemed too unnatural for Luke, especially since he wasn't a villager.

"Professor! Professor Layton!" Blythe kept shouting as she ran around the dark and pretty much deserted streets of Felinery. All of a sudden, searing pain shot through her hands. She screamed in pain as she crumpled to the ground. She looked at her hands and saw that it was starting to get all furry and claws had started to appear. She watched as her human hands were replaced with paw-like hands. Her first two transformations weren't this painful. Even if the pain was gone, she preferred if there was no pain at all like when her tail and ears grew. She slowly stood up and continued her search for the Professor in a slower pace.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Blythe! Wait!" Gracie shouted after but the blue-haired cat girl was already out of sight. She paced across Luke. "Oh, I knew going against the rules was a bad idea!" She took a deep breath then turned to Luke. "Do you need anything? Do you feel alright?" she asked.

Luke shook his head. "Aside from the fact that I have cat ears, I'm fine…Well, I think I am…"he muttered, checking his body for other abnormalities.

The cat dropped the blue hat. It meowed something at Luke and almost looked like it smirked.

"I am not!" Luke retorted to the cat. His shout startled it which made it hide behind Gracie. He picked up his blue hat and dusted it.

Gracie sighed, hating herself for not being able to help. "What did he say this time?"

"He called me a wimp." Luke muttered as he played with his new cat ears. Curious, Gracie went near Luke and touched one of the cat ears. It twitched.

"Hey! Those are sensitive, you know!" Luke said quickly, swatting Gracie's hand from his ears.

Gracie blinked, "Sorry! I was just curious!"

The cat hissed at Luke, as if to say 'don't hurt her'.

Luke glared back at the cat."Well excuse me princess!" He snapped, irritably.

"Stop shouting at me!" she retorted. "What kind of Layton's apprentice are you? You have no manners whatsoever! Plus, the cat's a boy!"

Luke folded his arms, "I perfectly know what gender he is!" He said, rudely.

"A lady doesn't like being yelled at by a boy!" she retorted again.

Luke frowned, his face was a bright red, he never got yelled at by a lady."You're making me feel uncomfortable." He whispered.

She looked away, her face matching Luke's shade of red. "W-Well I feel the same." A moment of silence passed between them.

Blythe arrived back at the fountain. "Arguing again? And Luke's not the only one who's changed." She held up her new paws. "Ta-dah…" she said grimly, "I couldn't find Layton. Plus, I just endured a painful werewolf-like transformation. "

Luke frowned a little bit."This is sooo not good..." He whispered sadly. He tried to flatten down his cat ears, failing miserably. He glanced at Blythe's paws and muttered, "I think I'm going to hate turning into a cat…"

"Are you alright?" Gracie asked concerned. Everyone around her were turning into cats…and she doesn't know what to do.

"I changed too…"Toshiro said quietly as he approached the group. He now had short, black cat whiskers.

Blythe blanched at the sight of Toshiro's whiskers. "Do those hurt like my paws do?" she asked quietly.

Gracie turned and looked at Toshiro and smiled, "So cute!" she said. "They suit you!"

Toshiro turned a little red in the face when he heard what Gracie said."I...I don't like them...they hurt my face..."

Her face dropped, "Oh, sorry! I didn't know..."

She held on tighter to the cat, who eyed every one of the 'humans'.

"You don't understand!" Blythe cried out more harshly than she meant too. "This is NOT fun. Within a few days, I probably will be stuck a cat the rest of my life! Luke and Toshiro too!" She sat down, holding her head in her paws. She glanced at her feet. Luckily, those were still human.

Gracie looked at the floor. She didn't think it was fun to turn into a cat and when she said that the whiskers looked cute on Toshiro, she didn't mean it if the comment hurt. Another moment of silence.

Luke sighed. _Might as well do something useful for the case…_ "Toshiro, how did you get the necklace?" he asked quietly.

Soon, all eyes were trained on Toshiro, all curious to know the answer. "Yeah…where did that necklace from?" Blythe asked.

Toshiro looked at Luke."The day people turned into cats...I just woke up and it was on me. I can't seem to get it off."

Luke nodded."What about us? We don't have necklaces..." He pointed out.

"I don't know how I got it..."Toshiro pulled at the necklace. It wouldn't budge.

"I bet it's a clue!" Blythe cheered up a little. "Come here Toshiro, let me see it."

Luke took out his notebook and pencil."I'll write it down!" He chirped. He continued to make sketches of the necklace.

Toshiro walked over to Blythe. He held up the chain and the charm at the end. It was shiny and red with the picture of a cat.

Blythe went towards Toshiro to inspect the necklace. She suddenly blushed as she realized how close she was to him. "Oh look! There's little cat heads on the necklace!" She quickly stepped away from Toshiro.

Toshiro blushed."U-uh...y...yeah...I think it might help in...This problem..."

"Problem is an understatement," Blythe said darkly. She looked up at the moon overhead. "Geez how late is it?"

Gracie felt a bit useless, so she looked around the town. "After midnight. Judging by the position of the moon... about three thirty."

"I'm tired..." Blythe yawns. Without thinking she curls up on the ground and goes to sleep. Like a cat.

Luke scribbled down notes."Well... I'm not the least bit tired. I think the instincts kicked in..." he muttered under his breath.

"M...me too."Toshiro yawned loudly. Like Blythe, he curled up and slept like a cat. Then his necklace started to glow. His hands started to turn into paws. His faced scrunched up a little but became peaceful when his hands were already turned into orange cat paws. The glow of the necklace also disappeared.

Luke sat down and yawned."I'm not the slightest bit... Tired..." He whispered rubbing his eyes sleepily.

Gracie started to panic, "Uh, g-guys. I-I don't think its best that you sleep in the street!" She let go of the cat and the cat went to sleep beside Blythe.

Luke yawned, "I would never sleep in the street..." He whispered, "There are too many germs..."

"Then get up," she said in a pleading voice. She looked around, "I'm starting to get..." She didn't want to say scared, but she was.

She hated the dark.

Luke staggered to his feet."What about Blythe and Toshiro?" He asked. His pupils shrunk, "Who now has cat paws..."

Gracie turned to look at Toshiro and she staggered backwards. "H-He has cat's pa-AWS!" She fell into the fountain, making a huge splash.

The splash awakened Blythe. "Huh? What's going on? Why are you in the fountain, Gracie?" She glanced over at Toshiro and saw his paws. "Toshiro! Wake up! You changed again!"

Luke let out a loud gasp."Gracie!" He shouted, trying to pull her out of the fountain."Way to go Gracie..."

Toshiro opened one of his eyes halfway."Hnnn...Zzzzzhm?"He yawned."What...is it..?"

She looked up at him... and she already had a cat tail. It was white as snow.

"Oh, great... This just keeps getting better and better..." Blythe sighed.

Luke sighed, "Gracie you need to be better with walking you know..." he whispered, sarcastically. His cat ears twitched a little bit.

"And the weirdness continues." Blythe looked at them all. "I don't know about you guys but I'm going home. See you tomorrow!" She walked off into the night.

Toshiro sat up quickly and looked at his paws."Aah!"

Gracie nodded, red from embarrassment, and stood up. "I-I'm soaked... and f-f-freezing."

"I would like to help you but these are the only clothes I have now." Luke said and pointed to his clothes. He hoped Layton would come soon and help them.

Gracie nodded, holding herself. Her tail wrapped around her leg in an attempt to heat it.

Toshiro shivered."There are times like this when I wish I had fur..."

Gracie nodded in agreement. "Y-Yeah..."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Lizzy woke up from her sleep and stretched in her bed. She glanced and saw the time. _ 4:05… _"Oh god! I overslept!" she said and quickly got up. She planned to check the fountain around 2:00am. She must have slept through her alarm.

She went for a quick shower, brushed her teeth, got dressed and grabbed a slice of bread to eat. She raced out of her house and headed to the fountain.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Luke sighed, his attention was short."What will detective Stone say?' He asked quietly.

"That we're in trouble..." She looked at both of the boys. "Should we go somewhere?"

Lizzy then saw Luke and some other children in the fountain. "HEY! What did I say about being in the fountain!" Lizzy shouted and walked to them. She was quite mad again.

Gracie didn't hide the fact that she fell in, but was still ashamed.

Toshiro's cat ears twitched and he looked at Lizzy."...S...sorry...?"

Luke frowned, his cat ears twitched."The Professor was investigating it!" He defended.

"Oh is he now? Then where is your evidence? I will not let you take a step in the fountain until I see the evidence!" Lizzy told Luke.

Luke sighed. "Calm down. Here's the evidence." He said, handing over his notebook.

As soon as Luke mentioned the Professor, Gracie's mind went to Claire. Suddenly she remembered what was at the back of her mind: the reason she was here in the first place.

"Luke's right."Toshiro said irritably.

Lizzy took the notebook and read through it.

Luke smirked, "Told you!" He yelled, confident that he was able to convince Lizzy.

"Yes well. That still doesn't mean that you should be IN the fountain. You can just look at it." Lizzy said to Luke.

Gracie sat down on the ground. She was cold, scared, and missing her 'auntie'.

The cat meowed and nuzzled against her as Gracie put her head on her knees.

Luke rolled his eyes, "We won't! Why would we? We already found out the consequences..." he muttered, bitterly.

"Yup."Toshiro agreed with Luke, and sighed.

"What was the last thing you said? I didn't quite hear you." Lizzy asked Luke.

Luke gave her a cold glare. "We already found out the consequences..." he said a little bit louder.

"You have did you? Well may you please tell me Luke?" Lizzy asked in a mocking tone.

Luke sighed, "Well gee... look at Gracie... there's a physical change, look at my head, another physical change. Look at Toshiro! I highly doubt you can't tell..." he said, sourly.

Toshiro's ears twitched. He nodded."I thought you'd know what the consequences are by now..."

"Ok then! Geez. I CAN tell that you all are turning into cats. Quite strange that is...I better write this down." Lizzy said and wrote what happened in her notebook.

Luke gave her a bitter look. "How you were responding didn't really seem that you knew..." he hissed."At all..." Lizzy just rolled her eyes.

Gracie looked up at him, "Luke. Don't answer back to Officer Stone." She smiled weakly, "The Professor would tell you to be polite."

"Hmm...Well I think you should leave things for the professionals." Lizzy said and gave Luke a cold look.

Luke sighed, "I'm somewhat professional!" he defended, quickly. He didn't really care if he stood up for his rights and got punished doing so. "What are you going to do? Bring me to prison? I am just a child... and Layton would save me! I know it!" he hissed, sticking out his tongue.

"Professor Layton is a professional..."Toshiro said quietly."He's in the paper all the time for mysteries he's solved..."

"I shall inform the professor on what you have done. That is all; after all, he shall do the punishment, not me."Lizzy told Luke and gazed him an even colder stare that could scare the life out of anyone.

Luke shrunk back, "Fine..." he hissed, quietly. He went behind Gracie. "She scares me..." he whispered.

"Me too..." Toshiro muttered.

Gracie shivered, from Stone and not from the cold. "M-Me three..." she whispered back.

"Listen. All that I am doing is my job of a detective to keep you all safe. You breaking the rules will just put you all in danger and I don't want that." Lizzy said to them all.

Luke smirked, "Can we have a list of the rules? So we y'know, don't get into THIS kind of predicament again?" he asked her before whispering something in Gracie and Toshiro's ears. "I have a plan."

Gracie remained silent for a moment. "... Go on."

Luke smiled his perfect little innocent smile. "Pretty please?" he asked, sweetly. He turned around and mouthed, 'I'll tell you when she's gone'

Gracie nodded, her face turning red a little.

Toshiro nodded.

"Of course. Though I thought for a boy for your age would know what to do and what not to do. But moving on. You must not go into the fountain, do not steal, no killing, you can stay up till midnight, don't go into the streets after midnight and final DO NOT go trespassing into people's homes and stuff like that. Follow the rules and I'm sure you will be fine." Lizzy explained and gave Luke a list of the rules.

Luke mentally took note of all the notes, "Well killing and stealing isn't what a gentleman does..." he whispered, before looking up."Why not after midnight?" he asked, quietly.

"Because when someone did that a week ago. He turned into a cat. There are many bad things that happen. So please don't go after midnight. Now I have a question for you. Have you seen the professor? I want to know if anything happened while I was gone." Lizzy asked Luke.

Luke shrugged. "How did you know that he turned into a cat? And Professor Layton went out past midnight and he isn't a cat..." he said with a small chuckle, before he sat on the stone edge to the fountain."I have no idea where he is either..."

"I talked to him yesterday when I was walking home."Toshiro said."He came here past midnight yesterday..."

"Well the person was one of my officers. Then I must find the professor now. Good day to you all." Lizzy said and went off to find the professor. _ Hm…The boy had some valuable information in this notebook. I'll give it back to him later…or not…_she thought while she put it inside her pocket.

Gracie turned to Luke. "What was your plan?" she asked.

Luke sighed for the millionth time of the night…or day since the sun was barely on the horizon. "Well, my plan is ruined. She just scares me too much."

Gracie smiled sympathetically, "Never mind, Luke." She put a hand on his in reassurance, "And I think she scares everybody." She smiled brighter, trying to cheer him up.

Luke sighed, "Should we make a note of this?" he asked, quietly. He remembered he had given it to Lizzy…and she didn't give it back. "Oh dear…"

"What?"Toshiro said to Luke, a tad worried.

Luke frowned, "My notebook... she has my NOTEBOOK!"He said.

"Don't worry; I will make notes until you get your book back." Gracie said as she got out her notebook that was packed with notes and sticky post-it notes and photos.

"But she has everything we need for the investigation!" Luke shouted.

Gracie sighed, "I know, Luke! WE know! So just... just stop getting annoyed!"

Toshiro sighed."Then we need to get that notebook back..."

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><p><strong>I'm a bit sorry if this chapter is too boring or too long for your liking. It will get better…I hope ^^; stay tuned for Chapter 8! Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored X3 Nya~<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8- The Masked Magician

Luke stared at the ground. "Well excuse me, Princess, but you're not the one who lost something!" he said, a little bit irritated.

"I am not a princess! Hmph!" Gracie retorted. She stood up and sat beside Toshiro instead.

Luke smirked, "Well you sure do act like one..." he said, smugly, "You act like one A LOT..."

"Well you NEVER act like a gentleman!" she yelled at Luke. Her face was already turning red from rage again.

Luke frowned, "I'd love to act like a gentleman!" he snapped, "Except it's kind of hard when a lady, if you can even call yourself that, is jumping down my throat every time!"

"I thought you were supposed to be a future gentleman. A gentleman never insults people."Toshiro told Luke, kinda sounding like Layton.

Gracie nodded and touched Toshiro's shoulder in agreement. "Thank you, Toshiro!" She glared at Luke, "And I DO NOT jump down your throat!"

Luke gave a glare at Gracie. His face going hot. "I don't even know why I bother..." he said, impatiently."We're all turning into savages... turning our backs on each other..."

Gracie's face dropped, but she still looked at Luke. "You're right..." She held out a hand, "Sorry... Truce?" She offered him a soft smile.

"I think even cats stick together .Besides, Luke, your important when it comes to this mystery."Toshiro smiled."You can talk to animals!"

Luke smiled, and took Gracie's hand. "Truce!" he chirped, before turning to Toshiro. "Hmm... I'm not all that special..." he whispered, "Like Blythe said in a few moments, we'll all be cats and NO ONE will understand us..."

Toshiro sighed, "Right...oh god, I can feel the fur growling on my face."He said, rubbing his cheek.

Luke sighed, before looking behind me. "I have a tail now..." he said, wistfully."We're in big trouble...I hope Layton solves this mystery and SOON..."

Gracie's smile dropped and, still holding Luke's hand, she held her tail with the other. "Can't wait..." she said sarcastically, trying to lighten the situation.

Luke pulled his hand away from Gracie's. "I do apologize but you know... I never feel comfortable when girls gush over me..." he said, modestly. He sighed, "At least I don't have paws like you Toshiro!" he laughed.

Toshiro's necklace began to glow brightly again."Oh no..."He groaned. His arms began to grow orange fur.

Luke gasped. "Oh dear! Don't turn into a cat on us! NOT NOW!" he whined. "You've been super helpful!"

Gracie sat back from Toshiro in shock. There was nothing she could say to make him better, so she just fell silent.

"Owwwwwww!"Toshiro grimaced. He had catlike greenish eyes and matted orange fur on his arms.

Luke stared, sadly at Toshiro. "This isn't good..." he whispered, quietly."Not good at all..."

Gracie crawled over to Luke and hid behind him. "H-He's in pain!"

Luke gave a small glance to Gracie, "Wh-What do you want me to do!" he asked, quietly. "Call an ambulance? Get the paramedics?"

"P-Protect me!" She looked at him, "That's what a gentleman does!" Before looking back to Toshiro.

Luke guarded Gracie a little bit. "Well gee... what's he going to turn into? A rabid cat?" he asked.

Toshiro panted."I-I'm not a cat yet...b-but I'm damn close..."

Gracie was still scared a little. "A-Are you going to be alright?" she asked from behind Luke.

"I t-think so...!"Toshiro replied."But the next time this necklace glows...I'll be a cat..."

Luke nodded, agreeing with Gracie. "Well this can't be good..." he whispered. "We better solve this mystery and soon!"

Gracie nodded from behind Luke. "Y-Yeah... real soon."

Her tail wrapped around Luke's arm, to make sure he didn't run away from her.

Luke's tail and ears twitched. "I fear...this may be our final hours as humans..." he whispered, unhappily.

Gracie's grip on Luke's arm tightened without her realizing. "I don't want to be a cat forever..." she whispered back.

"Me either...!"Toshiro said sadly.

Luke stared at his arm. "Gracie can't you loosen your grip a little? I think you're cutting off my circulation..." he whispered, before tapping her on the nose. "You won't be a cat forever... The Professor will find a way to reverse this... I know it!"

She blushed for both reasons and let go completely. "S-Sorry! I'm just... just really scared."

She put her head in her hands and whispered in the quietest voice, "Claire, please help me..."

Luke tapped his nose. "I smell something REALLY good...Like fresh bread or sweet rolls!" he said, happily. "The cat's instincts seemed to have kicked in..."

"I smell it too..."Toshiro said happily. He didn't notice, but he was purring.

Luke smiled, "You know... when you have instincts like these you wish you were a cat!" he laughed, "I bet the sweet rolls or fresh bread taste tons better!"

She covered her ears, until... she felt something furry under her hands. She lifted up her hands, "... Do I have cat ears?" she squeaked. She had two cute little white cat ears on her head that matched her cute little white tail.

Luke nodded, smiling at little bit. "It matches your tail. And your face looks good in red." he laughed, pointing at them.

Toshiro laughed, but it came out as a meow. He covered his mouth, slightly embarrassed.

Luke gave him an awkward glance. "I think something's wrong with your voice Toshiro..." he pointed out, even if it was obvious.

Toshiro went red in the face."...Meow..?"Toshiro sighed."Great. Now I can't talk..?"He thought.

Luke stared at Toshiro, "I can still understand you..." he whispered, realizing it was time for his special ability to come in handy. Or not, since they have cat ears to understand each other.

"Meowww..(L-Luke, I'm going to turn into a Cat...v-very soon...!)"Toshiro said.

Gracie looked over at Toshiro worried. Then an idea struck her. "Luke! Even if he can't talk, you can still understand him! Right?"

Luke guessed that the cat instincts haven't kicked in for Gracie. He nodded, quickly. "He says he's turning into a cat, very soon!" he said, quickly. "That's what he said!"

Gracie looked at Toshiro. "It'll be alright, we promise..."

Toshiro was about to say something, then his necklace glowed. It was so bright, Toshiro couldn't see anything.

Luke shielded his eyes. "Oh dear! That's awfully bright!" he yelled. He knew what had finally happened, and now, he was shocked.

POP.

Toshiro was now a small, orange cat wearing the strange red necklace.

Luke uncovered his eyes and stared in shock at Toshiro. "OH goodness..." he whispered, before opening his mouth. "Did that hurt?" He asked.

Gracie's jaw dropped. "So cute... Yet so strange."

"Nyaaaaaaaaah!"Toshiro cried."Meow! (YES, it hurrrrrts!)"

Luke turned scarlet. "It sounded like it hurt..." he whispered, before nudging Gracie, "He said it hurt..."

Gracie just stared. "Wow..."

From the rooftops, a masked man/woman watched his/her latest victim and laughed like a mad man/woman. "AHAHAHAHAHAH! I see my latest victim has bitten the dust!" The masked man/woman said and laughed some more.

"I-I mean... What do we do?"Gracie asked.

Luke was about to answer when he heard someone laugh. He looked around looking for the source of the sound, his cat ears twitching.

Gracie looked at Luke. "... What?"

Luke turned his head, "Gracie did you hear someone laughing? Cause I did!" he whispered, quietly.

Toshiro turned."Meow, Meoow. (Now that you mention it, I heard someone laugh too.)"

She nodded slowly, getting scared again.

"Nyah! (There!)"Toshiro yelled, pointing a tiny paw at the rooftops.

Luke nodded, "How do we get up there?" he asked, quietly. "It IS the rooftops after all..."

"Meow meow! (You've seen how the Black Ravens done it, haven't you?)"Toshiro smiled. He easily climbed up to the rooftops. He nimbly scampered from rooftop to rooftop.

Luke followed Toshiro. "Hey wait up!" He said, climbing after the cat.

Gracie followed after Luke. "Don't forget about me!" she shouted.

The masked man/woman smirked at them. "Look at them...so pathetic." the mysterious person said said.

Luke stopped at the top of a rooftop, seeing he was somewhat close to this masked person. He slid down the rest of the rooftop and stopped on the edge.

"NYAH!"Toshiro jumped and sank his teeth into the masked person's leg. He had some incredibly sharp teeth for a cat.

The masked person kicked his/her leg up into the sky, throwing Toshiro off of his/her leg. He/she jumped off the ledge and landed gracefully on the ground. He/she then started to run through the town. The mysterious person smirked.

Luke watched Toshiro fly up into the air. "Toshiro!" he yelled, before picking up the speed and holding out his arms, just in case his friend happened to fall into them.

Toshiro fell on the rooftop next to Luke. He winced. "Nyah... (O-ow...)" Luke picked him up.

Luke growled, jumping down on the ground and chasing the masked person. "Get back here you!" he yelled, running a little fast than he really should have been.

The mysterious person seemed to be…toying with them as he/she climbed back at the rooftop. The boy and the cat ran after him/her.

Toshiro wiped the blood off his face with his paw."(Do you think that person is behind this?)"He meowed.

Luke nodded, too out of breath to say anything. He continued to leap from rooftop to rooftop before getting closer to the masked person. "Stop right there!" he yelled.

The masked person ran even faster without losing a sweat. The masked person just smirked at Luke. "Foolish boy." The masked person though and jumped off of the rooftops and into the ground below.

Luke sighed, his face bright pink. "I think I'm going to pass out..." he whispered, still rushing as fast as he could."Pl-please..."

"Meow! (S-stop then, Luke!)"Toshiro meowed, jumping out of his arms.

Luke nodded, and fell flat on his face against the rooftop. "Just catch that person! I'll follow after I've caught my breath!" He said and panted.

Toshiro quickly caught up with the masked person."(Are you behind all this?)"He meowed.

Luke inhaled deeply and let the air fill his lungs. "Okay... I've got a mission!" he yelled, before leaping up to where Toshiro was.

The masked person just smirked and threw some playing cards at Toshiro in high speed.

Luke gave the masked person a strange look. "Enough of these guessing games!" he yelled.

Toshiro dodged the cards but lost his balance. He fell off the roof and on some garbage bags. So much for a cat having dexterity and flexibility…

The masked person smirked. "And why is that? I prefer that because it is so much fun to mess with your minds." The masked person said and threw some playing cards at Luke in high speed.

Luke caught one of them. "Ace of hearts?" he whispered, throwing it back at the masked person. "I hate guessing games! The sooner we solve this mystery the better! I hate being a half-cat, half-human!"

"Well I guess you just have to make do then boy, because we are playing by my rules now!" The masked person said and caught the ace of hearts between his/her fingers and threw it at Luke.

Luke sighed, "Oh come on! I don't even know what you are, a boy or a girl!" he asked, quickly. He was kind of confused by this person. He dodged the ace of heart by a hairline.

"Well I shall say one thing...I am simply one heck of a magician." The masked person said and threw more playing cards at Luke at high speed.

Luke tried to shield his face. "I do NOT want paper cuts from these cards now knock it off!" he snapped.

The masked person just laughed and continued running. "Yes, oh I do like your reaction boy. Now, let me wind you up even more." The masked person said with a smirk and threw more playing cards at Luke.

Luke rolled his eyes, "Me and my big mouth..." he muttered under his breath, trying to take it like a gentleman."I'm NOT going to stoop to your level!"

Luke followed close behind, hardly as determined as he was before. "Are you serious..." he whispered.

The masked person just smirked at Luke and threw more playing cards at Luke.

The masked man continued to run and jump from one rooftop to another and as he/she did so, he/she threw more playing cards at Luke.

Luke continued to dodge them, getting one successful paper cut across his right cheek. "Can't you just slow down and explain yourself? I'm sick and tired of running!"

"Oh but doing that will be no fun. I'm playing by my own rules so you have to follow them." The masked person said and continued running and throwing cards at Luke.

Luke nodded, before giving a dark look to the mysterious person. "Well who's to say your rules aren't fair?" he whispered, meekly. He tried to keep up with the masked person, but realized that he was failing. "Look you've won... now what's in your rulebook about winning and the person you've faced losing?"

The masked person smirked. "Oh that's easy..." The masked person started to say and somehow teleported behind. "I take you with me." The masked person finished saying and carried Luke on his/her shoulder.

Luke started gasped, "To where?" he managed to say before he was knocked out.

The masked person smirked. "Oh...you'll see...Lukey-boy." The masked person said and jumped from one rooftop unto another until he/she was out of sight.

* * *

><p><strong>*Gasp!* Luke has been kidnapped! What will happen to him and will Layton save him in time? And where on earth is Layton? Stay tuned for chapter 9! Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored!<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Be warned! This chapter is very short. But I hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 9 – Cries of a Cat<p>

Luke soon regained consciousness. He looked around and saw that none of the surroundings looked familiar. And more importantly, he had been tied up and was sitting on top of a box. He soon saw the masked person, smirking at him. "Where am I? What are you going to do to me?" he shouted, frightened as he tried to struggle against the binds.

The masked person just laughed. "Where you are doesn't matter. And as for what I'm going to do with you…" he/she said and revealed a container filled with the fountain's water, "I'm just going to make your progress into a cat a bit…faster, I suppose."

Luke winced. "I heard it's painful…" he muttered, eyeing the container."But the Professor will save me!" he exclaimed.

"Oh I am very sure he won't be coming to your rescue this time, Lukey-boy." The masked person said and took a step closer to Luke.

"What makes you so sure?" he asked, quickly. He was starting to feel horrible inside. Professor Layton would save him, right? He would never let him down.

"Just a hunch…" the mysterious person said, moving another step forward. Luke tried leaning back, further away from this terrible person. "A magician never tells his secrets after all." He pinched Luke's nose, preventing air from going in. Luke tried to hold his breath but he was just human after all. The moment he opened his mouth, water came rushing in.

Luke had no choice but to drink the bitter liquid. He coughed as the masked magician let go of him. Suddenly, he felt pain on his face. He groaned a bit as long, white whiskers sprouted from his face.

The masked person smirked. "Where's your beloved Professor now? He's not here. He won't come for you. You're all alone now. Now you know what I feel, Lukey-boy." He said.

"I may be alone now but a true gentleman never abandons his friends! And the Professor's a true gentleman!" Luke shouted at the person's face which made the masked magician angry.

"I don't care if he's a true gentleman! I don't care what a true gentleman does! For me, he isn't!" he/she shouted back. The person then grabbed the container and made Luke drink the remaining water. Luke struggled but failed. He soon felt fur on his hands.

The masked person stepped away from Luke and threw the now-empty container at the side.

"Who-meow…are…you? Nya!" Luke managed to shout. The masked magician turned to face him.

"Oh, you want to know? Well, I'll tell you this secret…"the person said and removed the mask, only to show Elizabeth Stone, Felinery's own detective.

"Meow! (You!)" Luke shouted but was surprised, as his own shouts turned into meows. "Meow? (What the-?)"

Lizzy chuckled. "Cat got your tongue?" she said. Luke growled at her and tried to launch himself at her but fell to the floor, earning another laugh from Lizzy. "It's amusing to watch you but I have business to attend to. Have fun, Lukey-boy!" She said as she went out and locked the door to the warehouse.

Luke was then covered in darkness and he was scared and alone. He felt a tear slide down his cheek. _Professor Layton…Where are you? I need you right now... _He thought. He let his tears flow and let out the pained cries of a cat. After all, a true gentleman never makes a scene in public…and no one can see him now.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, short chapter is short. Poor Luke. What will happen next? Tune in for chapter 10!<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Warning! There are two puzzles in this chapter so put your thinking caps on. (It's easy, I swear!) Just a fair warning. Onward to Chapter 10!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 10 – Not the Right Time<p>

"Toshiro!" Gracie shouted as she ran to where Toshiro landed. The cat slowly stood up and groaned. "Are you alright?" Gracie asked.

"Nya! Meow Mreow! (I am! But Luke's not!)" Toshiro meowed.

Gracie was able to understand him due to her cat ears. "Where is he?!" she asked.

"Meooow Meow! (He was kidnapped!)" Toshiro answered. "Mreow! (We need to find the Professor!)"

"Right!"Gracie said and picked Toshiro up, off to find the top-hatted man.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

'_Two detectives went missing after trying to solve a mystery. It was known that they were also on the case of a notorious criminal who died in a fire…' _

_Layton turned off the television and sighed. It has been nearly a month after the accident. He refused to solve mysteries for a while and decided to focus on his teaching career. He was 'taking a break' as others would say._

_But he guessed that break would be over soon. He had received a letter from Luke a few days ago. He picked it up and read it again:_

'_Dear Professor Layton,_

_ How have you been? It's been months since we last saw each other. Guess what? I solved my first mystery here at school! But I guess a bullied kid would try to frame a bully. It's funny how it reminded me of a puzzle you told me. Anyway, that aside, guess what again, Professor? I'm going back to London. Well, Dad has been thinking and decided to live back at Misthallery. Isn't that great? I'll be seeing you soon!_

_ Your apprentice and friend,_

_ Luke Triton'_

_Layton sighed and thought…'A true gentleman never takes another life…Can I still call myself a true gentleman in front of Luke?'_

Layton jolted awake, his hands wet. Wait...wet? He found himself waking up on a bench near the fountain. He looked around him. Didn't he fell asleep under a tree? Had he sleep-walked last night? He shook his head and stood up. He noticed that it was already morning. "Luke might be worried sick by now." He told himself and decided to head back to the inn.

To his surprise, Luke wasn't there. No note or puzzle left by his blue-hatted apprentice to tell him where he went. Layton felt uneasy. Luke wouldn't leave without a sign telling where he went or where to meet up.

He went out of their room and to the counter. "Have you seen a boy with a blue hat leave here?" Layton asked the receptionist.

"I can't say I have. I would have seen him if he left just this morning but he must have left at night since…I fell asleep." The lady replied and laughed weakly.

"Thank you for the information." Layton said and faked a smile. Inside, he was worried for his apprentice's sake. He left the hotel and headed back to the fountain. As soon as he arrived, a card was thrown at him and stuck on the ground. He picked it up and read it:

"_If you want to see your little apprentice before he fully turns into a cat, you have to solve the puzzles that lay before your path. Behind this card is the first puzzle you need to solve. A map to where he is, it holds._

_~Masked Kaito Kid"_

Layton almost dropped the card. Not only Luke was kidnapped…but he had just read the name of someone he has been trying to forget. "Kaito Kid…"he muttered under his breath. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard someone calling for him.

"Professor!" Gracie shouted, running towards Layton while carrying Toshiro.

"Gracie?" Layton said as he saw a girl with red hair and white cat ears and tail, carrying an orange cat with an orange, white-tipped tail.

"Professor! Luke has been kidnapped!" Gracie shouted and almost tripped. Luckily, Layton was near enough to catch her. Toshiro was able to jump out of Gracie's arms in time and landed gracefully on the ground.

"I know, Gracie." Layton said, the brim of his hat casting a shadow over his eyes. He noticed the girl seemed exhausted.

"Meow!" Toshiro meowed, then realized the Professor won't understand him now.

Layton looked at the cat and noticed the necklace. "Toshiro?" he said. The cat nodded.

"Toshiro turned into a cat last night." Gracie explained and yawned.

"You're tired, Gracie. I'll drop you off at the inn before we go search for Luke." Layton said as he half-carried, half-lead Gracie; Toshiro walking beside them. Layton put the card in a pocket inside his coat.

After getting back to Layton and Luke's room, Layton put Gracie on a bed. "Rest well." Layton said. Before he left, he heard Gracie mutter, "Take care…" He nodded and left the room with Toshiro.

When they got out of the inn, Layton took out the card and checked the back. Indeed, there was a puzzle.

"Start at the bottom, nothing's at the top.

USE your mind, be quick and go one line down.

If you want to see Luke, solve the puzzles I've placed around town

You ARE on the right track, go a line up from where you had start

Remove the W from WHO, then go to the underlined part

Put a W and go two lines up"

Layton read and re-read the puzzle but seemed to be thinking hard. '_Calm yourself down. You won't be helpful if you fret too much.'_ He told himself and started to read again the puzzle slowly.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Lizzy was again dressed as the Masked Kaito Kid, standing on top of a roof. She watched the Professor try to solve the puzzle but it seems he's going to take some time. She smirked, enjoying the sight of Layton unhinged from her recent move. "I have placed my queen into action…Is it checkmate? Or will you come out with a hidden move…?" She said as she saw a face of recognition on the Professor's face whenever he figures the answer to a puzzle.

"Let the games begin now…Layton." She muttered as she left the scene unnoticed.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

As soon as Layton found out the answer, the puzzle morphed into a miniature map. There was a path already traced on it, passing through three flags before it stops on a fourth flag with a blue cap. It appeared as if by magic. "Let's go, Toshiro." Layton said and ran, following the directions on the map.

The cat nodded and ran beside the Professor. Soon, the alley they need to pass through was just in front of them when a wall rose up from the ground. Toshiro growled, irritated by the new obstacle in their path. On the wall was another puzzle.

"_To remove this wall, you have to solve this puzzle. It goes in a sequence of ABCD. Find where the sequence ends and it passes all of the buttons. You can only start at the letter A. Oh, and you can't go over a button twice. Tick, Tock Professor."_

'_This is not the right time for puzzles…'_ Layton thought but had no choice. He still has to solve three more puzzles before he can reach him. '_You have to wait for a little while, Luke. This might take a while…'_

* * *

><p><strong>Isn't it funny the Professor thinks this is not the right time for puzzles but every time a huge event happens in the games, he thinks up of one? Sorry if characters seem OOC (like a too worried Layton *sweatdrop*) Stay tuned for Chapter 11! And remember, Reviews are loved and criticism is adored X3<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Mini puzzle alert! That is all. And this is a fanfic so it's obvious that I do not own Professor Layton and Co. Oh! and the answer to the puzzles in the two previous puzzles are:**

**First puzzle answer is... WAREHOUSE**

**Second puzzle answer is...the letter D in the first column and the fourth row.  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Chapter 11 – Past Connections and a Tail<p>

Layton and Toshiro were down to the last puzzle. They had passed the three other puzzles that stood in their way, including the wall puzzle. Most of which were trials of wits that required strategic thinking, such as finding a way to cross a raging river on a broken bridge.

"This is it, Toshiro." Layton said as they arrived in front of an abandoned warehouse. Toshiro's fur started to stand on its ends out of excitement. They soon heard a faint meow.

"Luke? Is that you?" Layton shouted. He had a bad feeling about Luke, especially now that he heard a meow.

Luke's throat hurt from meowing for so long but his spirits lifted when he heard the Professor's voice. _'Time to tell him I'm here!'_ he thought as he started to roll on the floor. As soon as he got near the door, he slammed his body against it and started to meow louder.

Layton took that as a yes and ran towards the sound. The only thing between them was a locked door. Luke slammed his body against the door again. "We're here to get you, Luke!" Layton said as he started examining the puzzle on the lock.

'_It really is the Professor! He's here! He didn't leave me alone!'_ Luke thought happily. He knew that Lizzy was wrong. The Professor is a true gentleman, after all.

Layton knew the answer to the puzzle but couldn't do it since the mechanism of the lock was too small and his hand was too big to turn the cog. Toshiro pawed the Professor's leg and meowed. He looked determined. Layton smiled. "You may solve this puzzle." He said.

Toshiro jumped unto Layton's shoulder and Layton crouched a little so that the lock was on the cat's eye level. He started to examine the puzzle.

"_There were two big cogs at the two ends and four little ones connecting them to each other. Let's call the two big cogs, cog A and cog B. Now, you have to make cog B turn **counter-clockwise**. You can only turn cog A. How will you turn cog A then? **Clockwise** or **counter-clockwise**?"_

Toshiro thought for a little while. Then, he found the answer…**(Dear reader, if you wish to solve this easy puzzle, please stop for a while as the answer will be revealed in a short moment…)**

.

.

.

'_Clockwise! Of course!'_ Toshiro thought as he took out his claw and started to twist the cog at the bottom. They were relieved as they heard a resounding click. The lock fell to the floor. Just then, Luke slammed himself against the door and stumbled outside. Toshiro jumped off of the Professor's shoulder.

"Luke!" Layton shouted. He immediately went to the boy's side and started removing the ropes that tied him up.

"Nya!(Luke!)" Toshiro meowed. He was happy to see his friend…but not in this kind of state.

Luke looked overjoyed. Everything was going to be fine now. As soon as Layton was finished untying him, he wrapped his hands…err, paws around Layton's neck. "Nyah! (I'm so glad you came!)" He meowed, his voice quivering a bit. He was already feeling a lot better. He snuggled against the Professor's face, just like a cat.

"Everything's going to be alright, Luke." Layton said as he hugged the boy back. He could feel Luke's fur brush against his face. He was relieved he found Luke, even if he was already part-cat. Toshiro watched the two, a smile on his face. It was a heartwarming sight to see. But someone really had to ruin the moment.

Lizzy was again dressed as the Masked Kaito Kid. Luke let go off the Professor and hissed at the magician. Toshiro's hackles rose as he also hissed the person. Lizzy then clapped her hands slowly. "Well done, Layton. You may be what they say you are."

Layton stood up and turned to face this person, only to be slightly disturbed by the looks of the man. This person also wore a white suit and cape accompanied with a white top hat with a blue band. The only difference was that the person was wearing a mask. "Who are you?" he questioned.

"You may refer to me as the Masked Kaito Kid."Kaito/Lizzy said and bowed a little. He/she had a playful smirk on his face.

"So you're the one who kidnapped Luke…"Layton said with a bit of disgust. He felt a bit tense after hearing that name again…Kaito Kid…

"Yes. Isn't it obvious, Layton? In fact, all of this is my work." Kaito/Lizzy said, the smirk never fading from his/her face.

"Nya! (You're that so-called one heck of a magician, aren't you?)" Toshiro hissed but was sure that only Luke understood him.

'_If only the Professor could understand me. I could just easily tell him that Lizzy is that man!'_Luke thought.

Layton looked around him and saw a path. "Luke, Toshiro. Go ahead. I'll catch up with you later." He said and pointed the way to Luke but his gaze focused on the man before him. "What do you want, Kaito?" he asked.

Luke meowed in protest but Layton shot him a look. He knew the Professor wanted to deal with the masked magician alone. He nodded reluctantly and carried Toshiro. They ran down the path, leaving the Professor and the magician alone.

Lizzy/Kaito didn't stop the children. They weren't his/her main target, anyway. "There is only one thing I want, Layton…and that is revenge…revenge on the world."

"Revenge? Why so?" Layton asked, preparing himself if the person before him tried to attack him.

"You should know well, Layton…After all, you were the only one there to witness it…or are you refusing to acknowledge that day in the past?" Kaito/Lizzy said, his tone had a bit of anger in it.

"That…day?" Layton asked. But he completely knew what this guy was talking about.

"Hmph. Very well then. I won't kill you just yet…It's not yet the right time. So until then…Farewell…Layton. But remember, the past will catch up with you…" Kaito/Lizzy said and threw a smoke bomb on the floor.

Layton coughed and waited for the smoke to clear up. When it did, Kaito/Lizzy was nowhere to be found. He decided to meet up with the two kids.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Nya! (Professor!)" Luke exclaimed and ran to the Professor. They were waiting at the town square, by the fountain.

"There you are, Luke. Toshiro. Are you both alright?" Layton said. Luke's stomach then grumbled, making the Professor chuckle. "It seems you two are. Come on. Let's get something to eat." He said and headed to a nearby café.

Layton went to the counter to order. He looked at the menu and said "It seems that they only make sandwiches here. Is that fine with you two?"

Luke and Toshiro nodded. _'Great…I'm reduced to nodding…'_ Luke thought bitterly.

Layton ordered three sandwiches, two cups of Oasis Berry for the two and a cup of Belle Classic for him.

All three of them took their seats by the window. Luke looked at the sandwich then at his paws. Layton saw the boy's discomfort. "Don't worry, Luke. We'll solve this mystery before you turn into a cat completely…" he said in attempt to cheer up his apprentice. He then saw Toshiro having trouble with his sandwich.

Toshiro was nibbling at a sandwich on the floor."Nyahh...? (Why does my mouth have to be so small?)"He muttered.

Layton looked at Toshiro and chuckled a bit. "Need some help?"He said and took the sandwich. Then he tore it into little pieces and put it down again."There." he said. He picked up his cup and sipped a bit of his tea.

Toshiro smiled."Thank you!" he said.

Layton nodded. One thing confused him though. He just understood what Toshiro said. '_Since when did I understand animals?'_ Layton thought. He closed his eyes and took a sip of his Belle Classic again.

"Toshiro. I think something's bothering the Professor…" Luke said.

"Maybe he's thinking about something?" Toshiro replied.

"That's strange…"Layton suddenly said as he finished his tea. "Did you two just spoke in English and not meows?"

Luke and Toshiro looked at each other first then shook their heads. Layton thought of a reasonable explanation but regarded it as impossible. After all, getting his hands wet with the fountain water wasn't enough to turn him into a cat…was it? He felt something twitch on his head though…

"Ahhhh!" Toshiro suddenly shouted and jumped almost three feet in the air. Layton almost dropped his teacup in surprised. Luke then looked at where Toshiro was looking and froze in shock.

"What is it, Toshiro?" Layton asked.

"Y-you…YOU GREW A TAIL!" Toshiro shouted.

* * *

><p><strong>And that's where Chapter 11 ends! The Professor has a tail! What will happen next? Tune in to Chapter 12! And remember, Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored! :3 Nya~<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12- Never Trust a Cup of Tea

"This is bad…Really bad…"Toshiro muttered as he paced around, tail swishing back and forth.

Layton grabbed and felt the tail. Surely, this wasn't a dream. "I'm sure we can find a way to fix this." He said as he stared at black tail in his hands. "Excuse me." He said and stood up from his chair. He went to the restroom to wash his face.

Right before Professor Layton left, Gracie saw everything from the café's window. "Luke?! And the Professor, too?!" she shouted and covered her mouth, just in case somebody heard her shout.

The Masked Kaito Kid smirked. She was standing on top of a house when she shouted. 'Hm…I think I'm not yet satisfied…' she thought as she decided to play with them some more. She jumped down from the rooftop and landed into a bush. When she came out, she was back into her normal clothing. She walked casually towards Gracie, who started to head to the café, and 'bumped' into her.

"O-oh! O-officer Stone!" Gracie stuttered as she tried to step around Lizzy to get in the café.

"Oh Gracie! Sorry for bumping into you. I wasn't paying attention to where I was walking." Lizzy said and smiled. "Not breaking the law, are we?"

"N-not at all, Officer Stone." Gracie replied as she looked at the window again. Seeing Luke in a werecat kind of look made her worry about what happened...

"That's good to hear. Why don't you accompany me?" Lizzy asked.

"Accompany you where?" Gracie asked, her tail swishing back and forth, both out of curiosity and impatience. If she was less-mannered, she would have pushed Lizzy away a while ago and entered the café already. Little did she know that she was in for trouble…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Toshiro had been pacing back and forth on the table. He kept on muttering, "This is bad…What if he turns completely? Who will solve the case?"

Luke put down his half-eaten sandwich. "Toshiro…Please stop that. You're making me dizzy and I might throw up what I just ate…" he said. He was also worried but he had to remember that a true gentleman keeps calm in every situation…something like that…

Soon, the bell on the café's door chimed. Two people entered. "So…are you hungry? Don't worry. I'll pay." They overheard a voice say that sounded very much like…

Toshiro's fur started to stand up as he glared at the detective. "Lizzy!" he hissed.

Luke looked behind him and saw Lizzy with Gracie, looking at the menu. "Are you sure? I have some money here…" Gracie said as she started looking inside her bag.

His eyes widened. '_This can't be good!'_ he thought as he started to lose his cool.

"Of course I'm sure. We all need a break from this ridiculous case. I've been all around town, asking questions, finding clues. I'm pretty sure you're tired as well." Lizzy said and smiled.

Gracie smiled back. "Thank you officer!" she said. When Lizzy looked at the menu board, she glanced at Luke. "What happened?" she mouthed, trying not to attract Lizzy's attention. She also happened to notice Toshiro, who was still hissing at the sight of Lizzy.

Luke pointed at Lizzy then pointed at himself. He just hoped that Gracie would get the message.

And as he expected, Gracie tilted her head in confusion. Just when Luke was about to say something, Lizzy interrupted.

"I'd like a cup of Dream Spice. What do you want, Gracie?" she asked, still looking at the menu. She put her hand inside her pocket. Inside her pocket was a small glass bottle filled with glowing water.

"Oh! Umm…"Gracie responded, not expecting Lizzy's question, "…Oasis Berry, please."

"How can we warn her without alarming Lizzy?" Luke whispered to Toshiro, trying to get an idea. He already had an idea on what he was going to do but what if Gracie doesn't understand?

"I'll etch some words on the table and hope she passes by." Toshiro responded and started clawing the table.

Luke nodded and looked back at Gracie. She was headed his way and was going to sit at the table next to them. He mouthed, "_Don't trust her!"_

Gracie shook her head, in attempt to tell him she didn't understood what he said. She glanced at Toshiro and saw some writings on the table. But she passed by too quickly to read it properly. If she stayed a bit longer, it would be a bit suspicious.

Luke frowned. He crossed his fingers and just wished that whatever Lizzy was planning would fail.

Lizzy passed by the two, holding a cup of Dream Spice and another of Oasis Berry. Toshiro hissed at the detective while it took all of Luke's will not jump at Lizzy's throat. The detective smirked at the two for a second, infuriating them.

"Here you go, Gracie. Enjoy your tea…"Lizzy said, putting the teacup in front of the girl. She had secretly poured a small bottle of fountain water in the Oasis Berry. She smirked as the girl put the cup near her mouth when Gracie put down the teacup, covering her nose.

"Does it have any strawberries in it?" Gracie asked, "If it does, I can't drink that…I'm allergic to them."

Lizzy's smirk faded away. "It doesn't have any strawberries in it. You can take my word as a detective." She said as she put her hand on her chest where the heart is supposed to be.

Toshiro rolled his eyes upon hearing that. "Detective's word…yeah right…"he muttered under his breath.

"Could you just replace it with something else?" Gracie asked. Secretly, she noticed Luke and Toshiro's signals to not drink the tea. She was trying to find a way for not to drink whatever Lizzy gave her.

Lizzy sighed. "Fine. I'll get you something else then." She said, exasperated. _'Stupid Child!'_ she thought bitterly as she ordered a cup of green tea instead. No way a strawberry can get in a green tea. She was thankful that she had a spare bottle of the fountain water. She poured some in it before she went back. "Here…is that better?" she asked, hoping the girl would say yes.

"Yes. Thank you. I'm sorry I didn't mention it before. I didn't mean to trouble you." Gracie said, looking down in shame and in slight defeat. What excuse can she use now? She can't say she's allergic to green tea as well…

"It's alright, dear. Just a simple mistake." Lizzy replied and gave her the drink.

Gracie slowly brought it to her mouth, still trying to find an excuse not to drink it when a certain cat-girl slammed the café's door open. It also caught the attention of Luke and Toshiro.

"Hi guys! It's fancy seeing you all here! I thought the fountain was meeting place but now, I guess the café's our meeting place, too." Blythe shouted, "Oh! And I got new cat features last night as well…and what happened to you two?!" she added, pointing at Luke and Toshiro.

Gracie put the cup down and let out a little sigh of relief. She wanted to thank Blythe for the interruption.

Lizzy grinded her teeth in frustration. She looked at her watch. "Oh, will you look at the time…A detective's work is never done. I must leave you all." She said and left abruptly, not even touching her order.

Blythe went near them and asked, "What's wrong? You two seemed agitated with Detective Stone."

Luke stood up and motioned Blythe to follow. He then took a seat in front of Gracie. Toshiro jumped on the table and started to etch some more words.

'_DON'T TRUST LIZZY…'_

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the long wait...I had writer's block for so long. But for now, it's gone ^^. I'll try to update earlier next time...if there is still anybody who would read this OTL.<strong>_  
><em>


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13- A Second Encounter

Gracie and Blythe looked at what Toshiro wrote. "Why shouldn't we trust her?" Blythe asked.

"Well, she's the one that TURNED ME INTO A HALF-CAT!" Luke exclaimed. Toshiro nodded.

"Wait! What?! You mean she's the one we were chasing before?!" Gracie exclaimed. Luke and Toshiro nodded in answer.

"A chase?! That sounds exciting!"Blythe commented; her eyes looked like they were sparkling. "Kinda like an action movie or something!"

"Exciting? More like ANNOYING! She even kept firing cards at us."Toshiro complained.

"Why don't we chase after her and catch her ourselves? I mean, we know that she's the culprit." Blythe suggested.

"What if something happens and the Professor's not with us? We might get ourselves into a much bigger situation than now." Gracie said, frowning a bit. "He's the only adult who can help us."

Blythe sighed. "Alright. But I'm going outside to look out for her." She said and stood up.

"Blythe! Wait!" Gracie called after. What if Lizzy was outside waiting for them?

"Let's go after her!" Luke suggested and stood up as well. The other two nodded. Toshiro got off of the table and Gracie followed behind. Blythe was outside, arms across her chest, a playful smirk on her face.

"Since we're all present here, let's go catch some bad guys."Blythe said. They all stared at her, dumbfounded. Did she just….tricked them?!

Blythe just smirked at them. "Let's go then! Or are you all just going to stare at me all day? " she said. She has barely even taken more than two steps when a card was shot at her. She dodged it by a hair's width and almost fell backwards. She then stared at the card that got stuck on the ground.

"Look! Up there!" Toshiro shouted and pointed his paw at the rooftops. There stood the Masked Kaito Kid, smirking down at them.

"Is that her?!" Blythe shouted, looking at the mysterious figure.

Kaito Kid chuckled and started to shoot another playing card at them. Toshiro had been able to dodge it and glared at the man on the rooftop.

"Not this again!" he complained as he saw that Kaito Kid had started to run from rooftop to rooftop.

"After him!" Luke shouted and the group started to give a chase. With their newly acquired feline agility, climbing onto the rooftop was easy.

"You are so going down, you ninja imposter!"Blythe shouted as she took out her claws and jumped at Kaito but she was fast and easily dodged it. Her sharp nails went a bit deep on the roof and she had a hard time trying to get it out.

Gracie looked frantic as she felt nervous. "Ah! What to do!?"she shouted.

"You could start by helping me!"Blythe shouted, a bit annoyed.

"R-right!" Gracie stuttered as she ran to Blythe. Toshiro ran pass by her and tried to claw Kaito's face only for Kaito to backflip and avoid his deadly paws. Luke tried to attack him after Toshiro but still Kaito easily dodged it again. It was like a silly little game to her.

Gracie finally got Blythe's claw out and Blythe was ready to get in the battle again. "Ok! Now I'm mad!" she snarled and bared her fangs.

"Ooh, feisty! This makes things more fun!" Kaito Kid said and smirked. Blythe charged at her,ready to bite. Toshiro and Luke were also about to attack. When Blythe's fangs sunk in, a cloud of smoke appeared and to their surprise, it was only a decoy!

"Over there!" Gracie shouted as she pointed to a figure jumping onto another flat rooftop.

"Does she ever get tired?!" Luke shouted as they started to run after her again.

"Now, it's my turn…"Kaito said and smirked as she stared to shoot playing cards at the four cat kids.

"Does that gun even lose load?!" Gracie added to Luke's question as they stopped to dodged the incoming cards. And as if to answer her question, the cards stopped coming. They ran to Kaito Kid and surrounded her, trapping her at the edge of the roof.

"There's nowhere you can run, Lizzy!" Luke shouted and pointed at her. He finally felt that he was able to use his finger-pointing training whenever he's cleaning the Professor's office.

"Damn you! It's all over for me!" Kaito shouted desperately and took a step back. She then suddenly smirked again. "…Just kidding!" she said as she jumped off the rooftop.

"Is she crazy!?" Blythe shouted.

They watched as Kaito Kid fell. Then, his cape turned into a glider. She laughed out loud when she suddenly felt a sharp pain on her shoulder. She looked and saw Toshiro, claws deep in her shoulder.

"I'm not letting you go away!"Toshiro shouted.

"Ugh! Filthy cat!" Kaito Kid shouted and shook him off. Toshiro plummeted to the ground with a thud.

"Toshiro!" the group shouted and went down the rooftop. Luke watched as Kaito Kid ran through some bushes to who-knows-where.

"Take care of Toshiro! I'll chase after Lizzy!" Luke shouted and ran off.

"Gracie, you take care of Toshiro! Luke's gonna need some back-up!" Blythe said as she stood up. She was about to run when Gracie objected.

"You take care of Toshiro this time! I'm tired of being left behind and not being able to help!" she said and threw her bag at Blythe.

"There's a first aid kit in there!" Gracie shouted as she ran off, leaving Blythe with Toshiro. Blythe stared at the running girl, surprised by her sudden outburst.

"…Ugh…"Toshiro moaned as his head throbbed.

"Don't worry, Toshiro. It's going to be all right." Blythe said and carried the cat to a safe place, bringing Gracie's bag along with her. She took a last glance to where Gracie headed and went to the warehouse.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kaito Kid ran through the village until they reached a place surrounded by trees and far from where Toshiro and Blythe were. She glanced behind her and saw Luke, still giving her a chase.

"Not giving in this time, Lukey-boy?" Kaito said as she stopped and turned around to face Luke. "Good…It's less fun when you've got no one to play with." She smirked.

"Luke!" Gracie shouted as she saw the two, not far off in the distance. She saw Kaito look at her with an evil glint in her eyes. She was only a few paces far from them when Kaito grabbed Luke and placed a gun at his head.

"I'll shoot him unless we make a deal…"Kaito said, serious.

"We're not afraid of playing cards! Right, Gracie?!" Luke shouted. Gracie nodded in agreement and was about to charge at Kaito when she said something interesting.

"Do you think that cards are the only thing this gun is loaded with?"Kaito said, pressing the gun harder to Luke's head. The two children immediately picked up what she meant. Kaito then let go of Luke and got another gun to point at Gracie. Luke was about to run away from Kaito when she whispered in his ear, "Don't make a mistake of getting away or you'll figure out what these guns are loaded with." This made Luke stiff with fear, paralyzed under the barrel of the gun.

"W-wait…So you're not kidding when you said these guns are loaded?!" Gracie shouted, becoming scared as well. Wandering off without Professor Layton was really a bad decision.

Kaito only smirked at the sight of their frightened expressions. "Now, if you would both be good enough to reach into your pockets and drink the vial of fountain water I had magically placed there, I might consider letting you both go…but if not…" she said, knowing that the two don't need her to continue to know what would happen.

Luke gulped as he put his hand in his pocket. She wasn't lying. There really was a small bottle in there. "If Layton finds out that those guns are loaded, you'd go to jail for sure!"he shouted, trying to sound brave and defiant.

"That is…if he can catch me…"Kaito Kid said and smirked. She felt that it was almost checkmate when she heard the voice of a certain person.

"Is that so, Masked Kaito Kid? Or should I say…Lizzy?"

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the late upload that almost took another year ^^;; Had to arrange a lot of events and delete a lot as well… ''orz …. I do hope I finish the next chapter faster ^^;; Till the next upload!<strong>

**Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored!**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14- Not a Gentleman?

"I never thought that you'd figure me out…Layton." Lizzy said as she turned around to face Layton, bitterness evident in her voice.

"Let's just say Luke and Toshiro made me pay a fair amount for a damage they caused in the café. But it was worth it." Layton said. Luke gave out a weak laugh as he remembered the note but the worried look on his face hasn't left.

"And after all…a true gentleman always finds out the truth." Layton added, tail swishing back and forth. He felt weird after saying the phrase he had already said several times before. It left a bitter taste in his mouth.

'_Can I still call myself a true gentleman in front of Luke after the deed that I had done…?'_

The question bounced around his head for a while. The only thing that interrupted his thought was Luke's voice.

"Yeah! And the Professor's a true gentleman!" shouted Luke, making Lizzy frustrated. Luke immediately ran besides Gracie after Lizzy turned around.

"Yeah!" Gracie shouted as well, glaring at Lizzy.

"Shut up, you brats!" Lizzy shouted and aimed a gun towards them. She let go of the other gun and it disappeared into thin air. An illusion.

"Now Layton…"Lizzy said, not taking her eyes off of the two cat kids, "Maybe you do have another trick up your sleeve…but I have a gun…and you don't know whether it's loaded or not…Would you like to find out?"

Gracie gripped Luke's arm, afraid. "Please don't shoot…I don't want to die yet." She muttered.

Inside Luke's mind, he had been chanting _'Please let it NOT be loaded…Please let it NOT be loaded..'_ over and over.

Layton was tensed. If he does something, Lizzy might pull the trigger. And he can't let himself do nothing.

"Lizzy…What's causing you to do this? I'm sure you're good deep down inside!"Luke told her. If he was going to die, he wanted to die knowing the truth.

"Oh, you really want to know?" Lizzy said, a malicious grin spreading across her face.

"Don't you dare!" Layton shouted, surprising both Luke and Gracie.

"Oh~ So you haven't told Lukey-boy yet…"Lizzy said and moved aside, keeping the gun trained on Luke and Gracie. She looked at Layton and smirked.

"Told me what?" Luke asked, curious. Gracie started to become curious as well, wondering about the Professor's outburst.

"Oh, it's something very important…How could he not tell you? After all, you're his number one apprentice…"Lizzy teased.

Layton clenched his fist. He can't let the boy know. What would Luke think of him after he discovers what happened when he was gone?

"I-I'm sure it's a personal grown up thing! That's why he hasn't told me!" Luke shouted, but he felt a little bit of doubt in his heart.

"Oh? Do you really believe that? Is it really a personal grown-up thing? Or a hidden secret?" Lizzy asked Luke.

"The Professor won't hide anything that's important! If it was, he would tell Luke immediately!" Gracie shouted.

Professor Layton kept quiet, just looking at the two. He was hoping that if ever the time comes for him to tell the truth, Luke would understand.

"Well, enough of this…"Lizzy said as she aimed the gun at the two children. When she was about to pull the trigger, she switched and aimed it at Layton.

"Goodbye…"

"Wait!" A shout that made Lizzy stop. She looked and saw that the shout came from Luke. "Don't shoot the Professor! Shoot me instead!"

"What are you doing, Luke?!" Gracie shouted at him. She wanted to slap him for thinking that that would help them, but she found herself paralyzed.

"Luke, are you out of your mind?!" Layton shouted and was planning to knock the gun out of Lizzy's hand when he discovered that he couldn't move from where he was standing.

Lizzy smirked at Layton and turned to Luke. "You sure about this, Lukey-boy?" she asked but needed no answer. The determination in Luke's eyes was enough.

"M-Make it quick and painless…please?" Luke said and closed his eyes tightly.

Lizzy smirked. "Since you said please…" She aimed the gun at Luke…and pulled the trigger.

"No!" Layton shouted, a loud bang echoed in his ears.

But instead of a bullet, thick smoke came out of the gun and made it hard to see. But for the Masked Kaito Kid, the smoke was no problem. She took out her gun and shot a card near Luke's feet. And with that done, she left without leaving behind anything else.

Layton coughed as the smoke cleared. "Luke!" he shouted as soon as he saw the boy standing, eyes still closed tightly. He ran to the boy and checked him. "Luke, my boy, are you alright?"

Luke opened his eyes and saw Layton in front of him. "Professor!" he said and hugged him.

"Professor!" Gracie shouted. She hugged the Professor as well.

Hugging the two children, Professor Layton let out a sigh of relief. "Gracie, are you alright as well?"

"We're fine, Professor."Luke said and smiled at him.

"It was scary…I thought I was going to die back there…"Gracie muttered as she snuggled against the Professor's coat.

Layton smiled at them. "That's good to hear…though I wish you children would stop wandering off without me all the time. It's quite dangerous, going around by yourselves."

"Is it true, Professor? That you're hiding something from me?" Luke asked, the happiness from before disappearing like thin air.

Layton was quiet for a moment. "Luke, it is a personal matter…I don't want you to get involved in it….That's why I haven't told you…" he explained. Here he was, breaking his rules of being a gentleman. But it's not completely a lie. There was a truth in it.

"See? You were right, Luke! Lizzy's wrong about the Professor!" Gracie said to cheer up the atmosphere.

Luke smiled a little. "Yeah." He said, though not satisfied with the Professor's answer. He noticed a small card near his feet. _"What's this?"_ he thought. He looked at the two and Professor Layton seemed busy talking to Gracie.

He decided to read it and just tell them what was written. "_I admire your bravery, boy…so I'll let you live for now. Oh, and you might want to look for a friend of yours…_

_~Lizzy (but please call me Masked Kaito Kid next time, hm?)"_

"Hey Gracie…"Luke started as he put the card in his pocket.

"Yes, Luke?" Gracie replied.

"Where's Blythe and Toshiro?" Luke asked.

"I told her to take care of Toshiro…and left her alone with Toshiro…who was half-unconscious…"Gracie said and started trailing off… and the realization hit them both like a ton of bricks.

"S-she might get Blythe next! She's going to turn into a full cat like Toshiro!" Gracie exclaimed and panicked a bit.

"Don't worry. I'm here to help both of you." Layton said and smiled.

"Right! The Professor's here with us this time so we have a chance!" Luke said and looked at Layton with a smile on his face. Layton looked at Luke and smiled back. To others, it would just seem friendly look…but Luke and Layton could both sense the tension between them.

"_What are you hiding, Professor? I need to know…why are you hiding a secret from me? I thought a true gentleman never hides the truth…"_

"_I'm sorry, Luke…but I can't tell you…not now...I don't want you to get involved in this…I'm really sorry…"_

"_I'm sorry…."_

* * *

><p><strong>Well, here's chapter 14 and updated quickly this time XD What is the Professor hiding? And why does he keep on beating himself over it? Tune in and you might find out! Up next, Chapter 15!<strong>_  
><em>

**Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Puzzle Alert! ****You have been forewarned to prepare your thinking caps...rated 60-70 picarats by members.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 15- Puzzleception<p>

"Where do you think are they?" Gracie asked as she walked besides the Professor. Luke was walking on the other side of Professor.

"The warehouse. I'm sure of it. That's where Lizzy…I mean, the Masked Kaito Kid took me when I was kidnapped." Luke answered.

"Let's hurry then." Layton said. Soon enough, they had arrived at the warehouse where Luke was placed. They heard something scratching at the door.

"Let us out!" A faint meow shouted.

"Don't worry, Blythe! We're here!" Gracie said and opened the door easily.

"What? No puzzle or anything?" Luke wondered out loud.

"That is strange…"Layton muttered as he looked around. There's got to be a catch with all of this…

"What took you guys so long?!" Blythe complained. She was now a full black cat with yellow eyes. Toshiro walked slowly towards them. "Hey guys…" he said and smiled weakly. His head was untidily covered with bandages.

"What happened to you?" Gracie asked.

"Never learned first aid…" Blythe said and shrugged. "Anyway, Lizzy…"

"Kaito Kid…"Luke corrected.

"Ugh, fine. Kaito Kid left a card here before locking us in. Better?" Blythe said and turned to Toshiro. "Could you get it?"

"Alright." Toshiro said and went back inside. He returned a little later with something between his mouth.

Layton took it from Toshiro and started to read it out loud. _"By the time you get this, I'm already on my way to London. Move faster, Professor…or many will turn into cats…_

_P.S. In my house lies the remedy you need. But as you expected, there will be a puzzle waiting for you._

_~Masked Kaito Kid"_

"We need to hurry, Professor Layton. We can't let her do this!"Toshiro exclaimed as he went out of the warehouse.

"I know where it is. Follow me."Blythe said and soon, the group was running across town towards a little house near the inn Luke and Layton stayed in. They easily got inside.

Layton immediately looked around the room, searching between books and opening drawers.

"What are we looking for, Professor?" Gracie asked, the children starting to look around as well.

"A puzzle." Layton simply said as he started to go upstairs, Luke following behind. Luke didn't want to miss anything the Professor might say.

"A puzzle?" Gracie said, confused. Why was he searching for a puzzle of all times?

"According to the card, a puzzle is waiting for us….which will lead us to the antidote." Layton explained and smiled at Gracie.

"Ah! I see! I'm going to look in the other rooms!" Gracie said and split up to look inside the other rooms.

Layton and Luke were silent as they looked into every room. They entered a room with six bottles that contained different-colored liquids. Luke stopped by the doorway, just watching the Professor as he observed the bottles.

"Aha! A hidden puzzle!" Layton exclaimed as he picked up a card and read it. _"One of these bottles contains the antidote. Choose carefully. The other test tubes contain liquids that would turn you into a cat completely. Now how are you going to reach me in time? Oh, a little side note…No mixing of the chemicals or you might create an explosion. I wouldn't want my room to be dirty. ."_ the card said and a puzzle was written behind the card.

_The puzzle said:_

_"Mighty professor, oh have you fallen,_

_Is this mystery so hard that you can't solve it?_

_Day after day will pass_

_Day after day you'll turn into cats_

_Lonely professor, you will fail_

_Everything you gained will soon fade away."_

(Dear Reader, if you wish to solve this, stop for a moment for the answer will be revealed in a few paragraphs.)

.

Layton read and reread the puzzle and noticed the first letters spelled 'MIDDLE'. But there was a catch…It was either the third bottle or the fourth bottle. Layton was sure it wasn't one of those bottles. Layton thought deeply and had a serious face.

"Are one of those the remedy, Professor?" Luke said, trying to break the silence. Why, oh why did it have to become awkward being with the Professor?

Layton nodded, not even glancing at him. He just stared at the bottles with a hand scratching his chin. "Luke, why don't you give this puzzle a try?" he said as he handed the card, still focused on the test tubes. He was sure the Luke would easily answer the first puzzle…but would have trouble with the second one as well. A puzzle within a puzzle…within another puzzle…

A smile formed on the Professor's lips, as he finally figured out the tricky puzzle. "Did you figure it out, my boy?" he asked.

Luke scratched his head. "Not a clue, Professor."

Layton smiled at the boy and pointed at the first bottle. Just then, Layton felt a sharp pain in his hands, as if everything inside was being rearranged. Layton let out a shout and closed his mouth tightly, trying to avoid letting another painful yelp as the pain increased. He fell to his knees, wishing the pain would stop.

"Professor! Are you all…Ah!" Luke said and was interrupted as he felt an extremely painful shiver run down his spine. He crumpled to the ground. Soon, Layton's hands had turned into paws…White paws with a bit of black at the edge, making it look like gloves. Luke panted as the pain disappeared.

"We're so…close…I can't turn into a cat now…"Luke muttered as he slowly tried to stand up.

"This….can prove to be quite a problem…"Layton said as he stared at his new paws. He carefully took the first bottle with the bluish-green liquid inside and put it inside the pocket of his coat. "Now let's hurry before the train to London leaves."

Professor Layton and Luke went downstairs where Gracie, Blythe and Toshiro were waiting for them.

"Professor! You have paws!" Gracie exclaimed.

"Yes, I know." Laytom simply said. "And Luke's about to turn into a cat."

"Not good! You can't turn into a cat now! And the Professor's going to be next!"Toshiro panicked.

"If we stay here and keep on chatting, we WILL turn into cats." Luke said. "Let's hurry up and get Lizzy!"

"To the station!" Blythe meowed, determined to end this cat and…cat chase.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, I promised a quick update X3 Here it is, nya~ So did you find the puzzle hard? None of the other role players solved it. The puzzle was made by me :3 If you were wondering how it happened, here's the explanation:<strong>

**First, the first letters spelled "MIDDLE".**

**6 has two middles, three bottles from the left and three bottles from the right (Third and fourth bottle) but 'SIX' has only one. The middle of SIX is is the letter 'I'. Which is equals to '1' to Roman numerals.**

**S 'I' X= I=1 so the first bottle is the right one. First puzzle was the poem, the second puzzle was the middle and the third one was what 'I' stood for.**

**A puzzle within a puzzle...within another puzzle. Puzzleception! :DDD**

**Anyways, stay tuned for Chapter 16! The story is close to its end but don't worry...There's a sequel :DD**

**Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored!**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16- Going Back to London

The group dashed to the train station, hoping to catch the train before it leaves.

"The train's about to leave! We won't make it on time!" Blythe shouted as she tried to run faster.

"Don't worry! We can do this!" Luke smiled at Blythe to reassure her. Gracie noticed this and tried to ignore it but she felt jealous. Luke never reassured her like that. With this on her mind, she ran ahead 'accidentally' hitting Blythe in the process.

"Hey!" Blythe reacted but said nothing else. Soon, the train whistle blew. "All aboard!" a man shouted.

"Run faster and we might be able to get on at the back of the train!" Toshiro shouted, but was falling behind. He still hasn't recovered from his head injury. Gracie got on with no problem, followed by Luke who helped Blythe get on. Layton noticed that Toshiro was starting to slow down so he grabbed Toshiro and held on the brim of his top hat with his other hand as he leapt. Luckily, he landed safely just as the train started to move.

The group went through a sliding door to the next room. It was filled with bags of different shapes and sizes.

"Wait! We don't even have tickets to be on this train!" Luke whispered harshly, afraid to be caught.

"This is an emergency, my boy. We have to make an exemption with the rules this time." Layton said as he was about to touch the sliding door to the next cart when he heard footsteps. Layton was alarmed by this.

"Hide!" he whispered harshly as he ran behind a couple of bags, hiding him completely. The rest of the group immediately followed his example and hid. Soon, a man who looked like one of those people who get your tickets opened the door. He looked around and slowly walked in.

"Huh…Must've been my imagination…" the man muttered and shook his head. He then went out and closed the door once more.

After waiting for a couple of minutes, the group went out of their hiding place and let out a sigh of relief. "That was close…" Toshiro said as he hopped on a couple of bags.

"We have to find that man again, though…"Layton said.

"Why, Professor?" Gracie asked, confused.

"If you haven't noticed, the man's scent matched with Lizzy. Who knows? It might be her in disguise. We have to keep an eye on that man." Layton explained. The cat senses had proved to be quite useful this time.

Luke started to sniff the air and retreated a bit. "It does smell like Lizzy's scent!"He whispered, surprised by the fact that the man was Lizzy and the fact that they can sniff people's scents now.

"What are we waiting for?!"Blythe exclaimed and Gracie shushed her, irritated.

"Don't be so loud!" Gracie whispered harshly.

"Hey! I didn't mean it!" Blythe lowered her voice, reply with the same irritation.

Layton sighed at the children's bickering. He opened the door a bit and looked around. There was no one else in the hallway and everything was silent except for the constant grinding of the train's wheels against the tracks. He went out and signaled the children that it was safe to go out.

The children followed the Professor, who looked inside a room. The top-hatted man went inside and they continued to follow silently. After everybody was in the room, Layton closed the door.

"Stay here and find a place to hide, just in case someone peeks in. I'm going to try and find her. Gracie, since you're the only one left who doesn't have paws for hands, lock the door after I go out, will you?" Layton said.

Just before Layton left, Luke called after him. "Professor, there's something I remembered. If you do see Lizzy, could you please get my notebook from her? I still need it."He said.

"_To solve a mystery much bigger than this…" _he thought but didn't dare to voice out. The Professor might pick up on what he meant.

Layton nodded and left without another word. Luke sighed as Gracie locked the door to their carriage. He closed his eyes and began to subconsciously pet Blythe. Blythe was irritated but remained quiet as she noticed that Luke was in deep thought.

Gracie frowned as she started to become more jealous. _"He never even thanked me for checking up on him when he faced Lizzy…"_

Luke opened his eyes and stopped stroking Blythe's fur. He stood up and looked like he just decided to do something else than following the Professor's words. He went to the door and placed his paws on the lock, trying to unlock it.

"Luke, what are you doing?" Toshiro asked, cat ears perked up, "Professor Layton told us to stay right here."

"I'm going out to help him…whether he likes it or not…"Luke muttered as he flicked the lock up with his paw, finally opening the door. He left without saying anything else.

"Hey! Wait for us!" Blythe shouted after Luke and followed him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Lizzy saw the Professor as he passed by her room. She had changed from being a ticket boy into an old man who looked rich and famous, with her black tuxedo, black top hat and a cane with a golden lion's head as the tip. As she went out, she bumped into Luke who was being followed by a black cat that kept on meowing at him.

"Do watch where you are going, boy!" she exclaimed, playing her part right.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to."Luke muttered, gazing at the floor.

The disguised man sighed. "It's alright, young man." She said.

Blythe, who followed Luke when he went out, hissed at the man. She was about to bite the man's leg when Luke pulled her tail.

"Oh no you don't! His scent doesn't match Lizzy's scent so it's not her! You're not going to bite an innocent man!" Luke exclaimed as he picked her up.

Blythe put her paws on Luke's chest and looked up at him with puppy dog eyes…which looked a bit odd on a cat.

"No! I refuse to let you go!" Luke said. Blythe hissed some really nasty words at him.

Luke gasped. "Now, what would the Professor say!?"He lectured, giving the cat a cold glare. "I bet it would be along the lines of 'A true lady doesn't swear…and a gentleman doesn't swear as well'."

Blythe gave him a bored look. "I'm not a lady. I'm a cat. And so are you."

While the two were bickering, Lizzy had left already in search of her true opponent. '_That was too easy…'_ she smirked at the thought.

Luke frowned. "Am not!" he shouted,"...Well, not yet, at least!"

Blythe decided to ignore Luke and noticed…"Lizzy's gone! She got away!" she shouted.

Gracie ran towards the two. She spent some time debating with herself whether to follow Luke or the Professor's word. She only made a decision when she heard Blythe's shout. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Luke carrying Blythe and Blythe's paws on Luke's chest.

"Where's Lizzy?" Gracie said, trying to hide her jealousy and anger.

"Luke let her get away!" Blythe told Gracie.

"WHAT?!" Gracie exclaimed.

"The man was not Lizzy!" Luke retorted.

"Have you ever thought that she might have changed her disguise?" Gracie asked, exasperated.

"Plus, he UNDERSTOOD you and didn't even notice your deformities! Have you ever thought about that?!" Blythe added.

"Well, he didn't have Lizzy's scent! And maybe, he was like me and understood animals or thought that I was in a costume or something! He was old!"

"Oh, Luke. Please. Can you hear what you're saying? It's an impossible scenario. Plus, ever think she could hide her scent? It's a little product called 'PERFUME'." Gracie said, trying to prove her point. Her face was all red now.

"Well….I'm going to check on Toshiro…I think he was asleep back in the carriage…"Blythe said and ran off, leaving the two all by themselves. But none of them noticed her.

"How very true…Hey, Gracie…are you alright? Your face is red…"Luke asked, suddenly concerned.

"I'm fine." Gracie said but her face and arched tail told otherwise.

"Yeah…and you expect me to believe that?" Luke said.

"Well, why would you care?!" she spat out, pouring her anger in every word.

"I care because…you're my friend…" Luke muttered.

"Well…A real friend wouldn't leave you all the time! And a real friend would appreciate another friend worrying about them! And they wouldn't shout at them..and a real friend would reassure another friend and…and…"Her voice cracked by the end. She was on the verge of crying but she tried to stop the tears that were coming. One escaped and rolled down her cheek.

Luke sighed. "You're right…I haven't been a good friend to you…"he said. "Actually, I haven't been a good friend to anyone lately…I'm sincerely sorry…Now, tell me…What's on your mind?" he asked as he wiped a tear that rolled down Gracie's cheek.

She looked at Luke with sadness in her eyes. _'You…You're the one on my mind…' _she thought.

"Lizzy…I just want everything to be back to normal…and she's the only one in our way…"she said.

"Don't worry! We'll catch her soon!" Luke exclaimed and smiled at Gracie. This made Gracie smile a bit.

"Yeah!" Gracie cheered and giggled.

"…But I still believe that the man might have understood animals like me."Luke joked.

"Honestly, Luke? Do you really believe that?" Gracie joked as well. But Luke didn't take it as one.

'_Oh? Do you really believe that?'_ Lizzy's voice echoed inside his head, making him lose his cheerfulness.

"Not really." Luke said and laughed, though a bit forced.

Gracie immediately sensed that sudden mood change. She frowned and poked his cheek with her tail. "Hey, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing…I think it's the stress from this mystery…That's all…I mean, we haven't even gotten any proper rest yet!" Luke said. It wasn't completely about the mystery. Layton was also in his mind.

"Well, let's go back to the room we were hiding in and rest there. I'm sure the Professor would come back if something happened." Gracie said.

Luke wanted to protest but decided against it. Maybe a cat nap would do him some good. "Okay, let's head back."

Their tails intertwined with each other as they walked down the hallway. For once, the silence was comforting.

"Hey Luke…Can you keep a secret?" Gracie said, breaking the silence.

"Of course I can!" Luke said, proud of himself.

Gracie gave him a solemn smile as they entered the carriage. Toshiro and Blythe were asleep side by side.

"After this investigation, I'll never see you again…." And with that, the comforting silence was shattered.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Layton sighed. There were barely any passengers and none of them had Lizzy's scent. He was thankful that those passengers were asleep or else, he would be in a lot of trouble. While walking back, he smelled a strong scent of perfume…as well as a faint trace of Lizzy's scent.

He followed it, believing it would lead him to Lizzy. Though, all he found was an empty carriage. "My mind must be playing tricks on me…"Layton muttered to himself and sighed. The stress and the pressure were starting to get to him. He turned around and started to walk, looking at the floor. He was too busy thinking about something that he didn't notice the person in front of him. He bumped into the man, sending him falling to the floor.

"Ouch!" the man shouted as his bottom hit the floor with a thud.

"Oh dear…"Layton said, surprised. "My apologies…I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." He held out a hand and helped the man up.

"It's quite alright." The man said as he accepted Layton's help. He smiled at him. "I'm think I'm getting to old…" A small smirk was on the man's face but it was barely noticeable.

Layton smiled back and tipped his hat. When he looked at the ground, he saw a notebook. He picked it up. "Sir, I think you may have dropped thi-" he said but soon stopped as he saw Luke's hand writing on the top of the notebook saying ' Luke's Notebook! Private!'. He remembered Luke telling him that Lizzy still has his notebook. "Lizzy!" he said with a bit of anger in his voice and stepped back. He has to put some distance between them for he is at a disadvantage.

"...AHAHAHAH! Well done Layton." Lizzy said and pulled the disguise off and was in her Kaito Kid outfit and mask. "Looks like you found me." She added with a smirk.

Layton stepped back again. He's too close for comfort. He looked around to see if he can grab anything he can defend himself.

Lizzy took a step forward to him. "Now...have you managed to figure out my puzzle I left for you? I hope it wasn't too hard for you." Lizzy said to him with her hands in her pockets and smirked.

"I have." Layton replied. He looked behind him and saw that if he took another step back, he'll be cornered. It wasn't gentlemanly for him to do so but he glared at Lizzy. His tail started swishing back and forth again.

Lizzy clapped her hands slowly. "Well done Layton, you are truly what they say you are. I'm impressed with you...but there is only one thing you cannot do Layton." Lizzy said and took another step in front of her.

"And what is it?" Layton asked, even if he knew the answer.

"If you want to know, try this puzzle, Layton. He or she has a secret name, the numbers 1412, these numbers make a word BUT what is the word? Get to thinking Layton!" Lizzy said to him.

(Dear reader, if you wish to solve the puzzle, pause for a moment as the answer will be revealed soon…)

.

.

.

"…Kid…The answer is Kid…"Layton muttered, as if the word was cursed.

Lizzy laughed. "Well done, Layton…Now you know…the name my father was known as!" she said as she took her mask off and crushed it into pieces. When she opened her hand though, there were no trace of the mask's pieces but instead, a monocle replaced it. She put it on her right eye and removed her hat. She ran her hand through her hair and soon, it shortened and became much like a boy's. She put her top hat back on and cleared her throat.

"What do you think, Layton? I must say, this look suits me better." She said in a much deeper voice, sounding like a 17-year-old male.

"This is impossible…"Layton said as he stared wide-eye at the person before him. Just then, the train slowed down to a stop.

"We have now arrived at London." A voice announced.

"Well, it looks like this is my stop. Goodbye for now…Layton…" Lizzy said as she threw a smoke bomb at the floor. And in the next minute, she was gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, there goes chapter 16! It took me some time since I edited A LOT...deleting scenes and adding new ones here and there...It's almost time to reveal the Professor's secret! What is he hiding from Luke? If you want to find out, tune in to Chapter 17! Till the next update! Nya~<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17- Revelation

Layton coughed as the smoke cleared out. He ran out of the train station in search of Lizzy. People gave him odd stares, seeing that he had cat ears and a tail but he'll pay attention to that later. He stopped and listened carefully to his surroundings.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The announcement alerted Luke and Gracie, making them forget about Gracie's departure after the investigation temporarily. "Blythe! Toshiro!" Luke shouted, waking the two up.

"What?" Toshiro asked, still half-asleep.

"So noisy…"Blythe muttered as she woke up and gave a cat yawn.

"We have to go now! We're in London! The Professor might be waiting for us outside and Lizzy might get away!" Gracie answered frantically.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Lizzy was now on the top of a building, "Hmm...Big Ben, the London eye, Buckingham palace, House of parliament...such a big place...this shall be so much fun. The show will be a big hit!" she told herself and laughed. She smirked and cleared her throat.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" her voice echoed throughout London. Several of the people down below looked up and saw her. They started to talk among themselves and pointed at the man on the rooftop.

"What's he going to do?!", "Is he going to jump?!", "What's happening?!" were the whispers and the talk among the people.

Layton soon heard Lizzy's voice from afar. He looked up at the rooftops. "Of course…"he muttered and started running to the rooftop of a nearby building. He ignored the weird stares and whispers he got from the people. He soon reached the top of the building and started jumping from rooftop to rooftop towards the place where Lizzy was. He has to put a stop to this.

"Today! You shall see a miracle, one that should never happen but with the power of magic, it shall!" Lizzy shouted. "…And there's no one there to stop me…" she mumbled to herself.

Layton finally reached the roof where Lizzy was and stopped a few feet from her. "Enough of this, Lizzy!" he shouted. Some of his cat instincts were telling him to charge and bite her but he restrained himself from doing so.

Lizzy turned to see Layton. "Well, it is seems that we have someone that doesn't like this. No matter, I shall get rid of him." Lizzy said and took out her gun.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Luke and the others got out of the train and heard a voice from a distance. "It's Lizzy! She's doing some kind of announcement!" Gracie said.

"Ladies and gentlemen?" Toshiro wondered what Lizzy had in plan.

"I think he's going to perform a magic trick!" Blythe shouted.

"We don't have much time! Let's go and help the Professor!" Luke said and ran into a building. He climbed the stairs up to the rooftop and started to head where the voice was.

"Luke! Wait!" Gracie shouted but the blue-hatted apprentice was already out of sight.

"Quick! To the rooftops!" Toshiro shouted. Blythe and Gracie nodded and followed after Luke.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Lizzy…please think before you act!" Layton shouted. He looked at the gun that was trained on him.

"Think before I act?" Lizzy said, "How about you, Layton? Did you think about the consenquences before you did what you have done?"

"…It was an accident." Layton muttered, looking at Lizzy's eyes. "It wasn't supposed to happen."

Luke was only a few feet away from them and kept on running towards the two. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain across his body…but he can't give up now. Even as he experienced the pain, he kept on running and jumping from rooftop to rooftop to reach the Professor.

"An accident? Do you expect me to believe you?" Lizzy said, bitterness evident in her voice. She gave a mocking laugh at Layton. "You were the only one who was there. You were the only one who could have started the fire. And you went out the window without thinking about the man you left inside."

"I did not start the fire or leave the man to his unfortunate end!" Layton shouted. It was true…and it had bothered him for a long time. He thought about it long and hard, a puzzle which he could not solve…unless someone else was involved. And the man…the man saved his life. He was still alive because the man pushed him out of the window where the firemen were waiting with a huge blanket to catch them. But only he was able to come out…because of that man…Kaito Kid.

"Face the truth, Layton…You're not a true gentleman….You're not a gentleman at all…" Lizzy said and glared at the man in front of him.

Luke had almost reached them. He jumped as a bright light surrounded him. He landed safely though not on two feet, but on four paws. His tail flicked behind him and his hat fell beside him. He had a white and brown coat. He was now a full-pledge cat. But he didn't care because he arrived just in time to help the Professor. But he never expected what was coming.

"..Because you killed my father!" Lizzy shouted, making Luke stop in his tracks and his eyes widen. It seems he doesn't need to investigate about the Professor anymore…because he just found out the answer.

* * *

><p><strong>I think this chapter is a bit confusing because of the changing of POV from Layton to the kids to Lizzy to Layton,etc. etc. ..Anyway, the big secret's out! What will happen between the Professor and Luke? Was it really an accident? Or something greater? Who knows? Find out soon!<strong>

**Don't miss Chapter 18! The story's about to end in a few more chapters! More revelations coming up! Nya~**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18- Gained and Lost

"Is it true, Professor?" Luke meowed softly but still caught the attention of the top-hatted man.

"…L-Luke?!" Layton looked behind him, surprised. The newly transformed cat just stared at him.

"Is it true, Professor?" Luke repeated. He can't believe a word he had just heard. His voice started to quiver. "I-Is it true…t-that you killed someone?"

"It's not what you think, Luke." Layton said hastily. "We wanted to save him, but it was already too late."

"BAH! You are all the same! Do you want to know what happened to those detectives who disappeared?" Lizzy asked but never waited for a reply. "I turned them into cats. But you…you're a special one, Layton. I don't want to turn you into a cat…" she muttered.

"…I WANT YOU TO DIE!" she shouted and shot a card at Layton. Layton had barely dodged the card and it left a wound across his left cheek. He tried to grab Luke but he ran away from him and hid behind some boxes.

Lizzy laughed out loud as she continued shooting cards at Layton, hitting his left arm. Layton grunted in pain as he gripped his left arm.

"P-professor…" Luke muttered, not knowing whether to help or not. His mind was still conflicted, the shock of the revelation still hadn't passed by. _"Why…Why did you have to hide such an important thing from me, Professor?"_

Layton dodged the other incoming cards and charged at Lizzy. He kicked the gun out of Lizzy's hand and out of Lizzy's reach. He learned a bit from Emmy, after all. Lizzy was standing at the edge. One wrong step and she will fall but it wasn't a problem for her.

"It's over now, Lizzy." Layton said.

"Do you think I would go down that easily?!" Lizzy shouted as she grabbed Layton and aimed a gun at his head.

Layton didn't even dare to move. This child was really determined to end his life. His gaze fell to his side and noticed that the two of them were at the edge of the building. People down below had started shouting and pointing at where they were.

"Look! Isn't that Layton?!", "He's going to kill Layton!", "We've got to help!", "Somebody! Call the police!"

If somebody did call the police, Layton would be very grateful. He wanted to catch Lizzy without harming her in any way. He had already caused her a lot of damage. And he'll do anything to make things right, even if it costs him his life.

Just as Lizzy was about to pull the trigger, a memory of her father passed through her mind.

_It was the night before her birthday. Kaito Kid was preparing himself for something special tonight so he put on his white top hat, his white tuxedo and his white cape that turns into a glider._

"_Father? Where are you going this time?"Lizzy asked._

"_I'm going to get a special accessory. The Destiny Diamond Necklace." He replied, adjusting his top hat._

"_Take care. Don't forget about tomorrow." She said and smiled._

"_Of course, I won't. I can't miss the day when I pass you my role as Kaito Kid."Kaito said and smiled back at his daughter. "The very first female Kaito Kid."_

"_I won't disappoint you, father!" Lizzy exclaimed._

"_I know you won't. Now remember, always keep your poker face on and a Kaito Kid can steal anything they want except for one thing."Kaito told her._

"_What is it?" she asked._

"_A Kaito Kid never steals another person's life…."_

Lizzy dropped the gun, hands shaking. "I-I can't do it…"she muttered to herself as she let go of Layton. She fell to her knees as she stared into a distance.

"I can't do it…I'm sorry…Father…"she muttered and let her tears fall.

Layton turned around to face Lizzy. He knelt down on one knee and wiped a tear on Lizzy's face with his thumb. He felt sorry for the girl, knowing that all of this was partially his fault. He hid from the reality that he wasn't able to help Kaito Kid…and it caught up to him quickly. He discovered that the past, no matter how recent or distant, will always find you and haunt you. "It's alright. I'm sure you can start anew, Lizzy." He said and smiled.

Lizzy's tears had stopped falling. She looked at the floor, the brim of her hat hiding her eyes. "Layton…I'm not Lizzy…Not anymore…"she said slowly, trying to make it sink in. She stood up and smirked as she towered over the top-hatted man. "I am Kaito Kid! And I'm going to get the Destiny Diamond Necklace!"

Layton stood up as well and smiled. "Not if I'm here to stop you…"he said.

"You've won this round." Lizzy, now officially calling herself a Kaito Kid, said and gave Layton a piece of paper. "Here's a hint to find the antidote for the curse. You better hurry before you all completely turn into a cat."

"Thank you." Layton said and tipped his hat. He took the piece of paper which had a drawing of the fountain. At the cat statue's neck was the very same necklace Toshiro had. He was a little confused of Lizzy's action since she was just angry at him a while ago.

Kaito seemed to sense this. "I'm not heartless, Layton. And…I decided to trust you…Based from your actions, I think you can't be the heartless man I thought you were…There's something that isn't adding up,though…and I'm going to find out what…" she said. Soon, a flock of doves landed on her.

"Goodbye, Layton…'Till next time." She said. The doves flew away and she vanished into thin air. Gracie, Toshiro and Blythe had just arrived, catching a small glimpse of Lizzy before she disappeared.

"She's getting away!" Blythe shouted and was going to charge after her when Professor Layton stopped her and shook his head.

"It's alright. Let her go. We need to get back to Felinery." Layton said. He suddenly remembered Luke and went behind the boxes. "Luke…it's safe to come out now…" he said and reached out a hand to him.

The apprentice retreated a little, ears flattened against his head. His tail was down as he looked at the Professor with doubtful eyes.

If Layton's heart was already broken before, this shattered his heart into fine dust. His own apprentice…his friend…had lost his trust in him. "Luke…"he muttered.

Luke ran past Layton and went to his hat. Layton just watched the cat boy.

"Luke? Is something wrong?" Gracie asked. Blythe and Toshiro looked at Luke, concerned.

"Nothing! Let's just hurry to Felinery. I don't want to stay as a cat forever." Luke answered quickly. He bit his hat and carried it with him. He went down the building using a fire exit nearby.

"Luke! Wait!" Toshiro shouted and chased after him.

"Would you stop running and leaving us behind!?" Blythe shouted and followed after him as well.

Layton stayed in his place, staring at where the boy's hat was. He felt a pang in his heart…just like when he lost his friend, Randall, and his girlfriend, Claire. "Luke…" he muttered, barely audible.

"Professor?" Gracie called, concerned. Did something happen between him and Luke?

"Hm?" came the Professor's response, pushing him out of his thoughts.

"Is something wrong?" Gracie asked the same question she asked Luke.

"Nothing, my dear. Now, let's hurry back and finish this case up, shall we?" Layton answered. He smiled at the girl, putting up his façade once again…just like all those years before. After all, a smile is the perfect mask of deception…

* * *

><p><strong>So how's the chapter? :3 So sorry if I took so long...And I know there's a lot of tension in it...It's almost coming to an end...Better start working on the second of the trilogy XP Stay tuned for the end! And plus, there's going to be some special credits after this story! I just hope it will be worth your wait ^^;;<strong>


	19. Chapter 19

**I apologize for not updating orz.. My laptop broke and all my files were deleted. It's still broken so I"m now using another laptop. I'm very sorry again. I just hope there are still people reading this story...**

* * *

><p>Chapter 19- A Trip to Memory Lane<p>

After a few complications on getting back to the train, Layton and the others were now on their way back to Felinery. The sun had already set and the stars had started to come out. Layton left the children in their cart and went to the end of the train to get some fresh air. He sighed. A lot of things didn't go his way. For the first time after a long time, he wasn't prepared. He tried to think of ways to explain his predicament to Luke without getting him involved but nothing came to his mind. Whether he likes it or not, Luke will be caught up into this as long as he is near him. In the months that Luke was in America, a lot of things happened. He looked at the now darkened sky as he recalled the events that made his life into a tangled web of confusion.

_One year ago, Luke and his parents, Clark and Brenda, left London to live in America. Layton's life was normal. In fact, he was happy. It was peaceful. He was contented, solving a few puzzles here and there, teaching Flora and spending time with her, being a professor at Gressenheller University, receiving a letter from Luke every week and writing a letter back...life wasn't just normal. It was perfect. But all of that ended when he received a request from Inspector Chelmey. _

_It was about a stolen diamond. At first, he thought it was like all the other mysteries he had solved but when he arrived at the Scotland Yard, he didn't expect to see a lot of other people there. Various detectives and inspectors, busy talking to the police for some information. _

"_Ah Layton, you came." Chemley said as he approached the top-hatted man._

"_Inspector Chemley." Layton replied and tipped his hat. He looked around once more and decided to ask._

"_Inspector, may I ask why are there a lot of people here today?"_

"_We're on a case of a great thief. A thief known to most detectives. We had just found out now but according to one of them, this man is a master in this field and we would need all the help we can get to catch this...Kaito Kid."_

"_Kaito...Kid?"Layton asked. This was clearly the first time he had heard of this name. Chemley handed Layton a piece of paper that contained information about Kaito Kid also known as 1412._

"_Apparently, he had stolen a lot of things in the past already." Layton remakred as he read through it. He then folded the paper and put it in his pocket. "I'll do my best to help."_

_o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

_The case took days then the days turned into weeks and the weeks turned into months. They were always outsmarted. When they were close to catching him, Kaito Kid always pulls a trick from his sleeve. These past few days, Professor Layton had been tired. He was a bit glad that Flora understood that he was busy and he might not be able to keep their usual schedule. He was in a room with two other detectives and Inspector Chemley. They were assigned to guard the museum where the Destiny Diamond Necklace and other valuables are. When their meeting was over, the two detectives left to head to the place immediately. Layton stood up and was about to leave as well when Chemley spoke up._

"_Layton...I'm quite disappointed..."_

"_Inspector,I'm quite sorry if I had not performed to your expectations but I'm just a professor with a hobby of solving puzzles. I'm not a detective in any way."_

_Both of them were silent and just looked at each other for a moment. Layton could see that Chemley was tired as well. Layton sighed._

"_I will be leaving. I still need to check on Flora before I head to the rendezvous point."_

"_Carry on."_

_Layton nodded and he got out of Scotland Yard, he sighed again. It will be another tiresome night tonight._

_o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

_It was the dead of night and they were at the meeting place. The museum was silent. All of them were tense and tried to keep their alertness up. Layton was assigned to the second floor. He walked along the corridor silently and even with the lanterns, it was dark. He took a look at every lantern he passed. It relaxed him, seeing the soft glow of fire. He thought that nothing would happen, just like some other nights, but then he heard a door open. He turned around quickly but saw nothing. Just darkness._

_Layton looked around. He was sure he heard something. He then thought that maybe, he was just tired and his mind was starting to play tricks on him. He started walking forward again. But he started to hear footsteps...and he was sure it wasn't his. He stopped walking and glanced behind him. Nobody was there. He was starting to get suspicious. He then started to walk again and heard the other footsteps again._

_He stopped and turned around. He squinted his eyes and noticed a faint silhouette of a person. His eyes widened and he was about to run after the mysterious person when he heard the window at the end of the corridor shatter. He turned once more and saw Kaito Kid, smirking._

"_Kaito Kid!" Layton shouted and ran after him. Kaito Kid was the main reason why they were here, after all. He'll just report about the mysterious person later._

_Kaito ran to the right. Layton had obviously picked up on where he was going. As they were running, Layton smelled something out of place. But he couldn't put a finger on what it was. His mind was entirely focused on capturing this man and ending this case once and for all. He then heard something shatter behind him. A lantern! He must have accidentally bumped into it and sent it crashing to the floor. The fire immediately grew and soon, the walls were on fire as ran where Kaito Kid went not just to get to him but also to get away from the fire and get some help._

_The fire quickly spread. After some time, he was able to chase Kaito Kid into a room. Here he was, facing the man in white. He had to get them both out quickly as the flames devoured the walls and the items in the room they were in. It was getting hotter and hotter by the second. The smoke was starting to get thicker and it was getting harder to breathe._

_Layton looked at Kaito and saw Kaito's face changed into one of worry and concern._

"_Layton!" Kaito shouted and ran towards him. After that, he pushed the top-hatted man out of the window. Below were some firefighters ready to catch him. Layton was shocked by what he did and wasn't able to react. _

_As he was falling, he saw Kaito disappear into the room and the fire grew larger._

"_No!" Layton shouted. His vision was starting to get blurry. He must have inhaled too much smoke in there. He landed on the blanket safely and he was laid down carefully. _

"_Get the stretcher!" he heard one of the firefighters shout. His consciousness was starting to fade. His eyes were starting to close slowly._

"_No..."he muttered. He wasn't able to do anything...he wasn't able to save Kaito Kid. The man who he was so determined to catch had saved his life...and he can't do anything to repay for it._

_o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

Layton thought deeply. He may have not killed the man but he wasn't able to do anything to help. For him, that was a lot worse. He was starting to regret accepting the request, starting to question his 'greatness' and was starting to dislike the man for causing trouble. But he saved him and that was what made him feel bad.

He gripped on the iron fence tightly until his knuckles turned white. He was conflicted. He was confused. Heck, he didn't even know if he was still in the right mind! He didn't want Luke to see that. To see his mentor breaking down. In his eyes, Layton was a great man and a great friend. But now, even that has changed.

"Why...?Why me...?" Layton muttered. He wanted to scream and let everything out. But he stopped himself. It wasn't gentlemanly to do so. And he wanted to at least try to continue being a gentleman, if he is one. He then heard the sliding door open. In the doorway was Gracie, who now has white paws.

"Professor?" she called out.

"Yes? Is there something wrong?" Layton asked, calming himself down.

"May I talk to you for a moment?"

* * *

><p><strong>Well, that's chapter 19. Only a few more chapters left! Nya~<strong>


	20. Chapter 20

**Short chapter is short. Sorry.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 20- Can't Take Anymore<p>

"Of course, Gracie." Layton said as he took a seat at a nearby chair. He gestured at the chair in front of him.

Gracie nodded and sat at the chair. She looked at the floor and took a deep breath. She then looked at the Professor's face. "Professor...Do I look familiar?"

This question threw Layton off a bit. She did look a bit like her, just like Luke mentioned when they first met Gracie. "Not exactly. But you look a bit like someone I know..."

"Who?"

Silence. It took some time for Layton to reply but he muttered her name. "...Claire."

"Does she have a sister?" she asked. Layton shook his head.

'_Well, I guess I can't lie and just tell him I'm her niece...'_ Gracie thought. She'll have to risk it then.

"...I see." Gracie replied and looked down. "Is she still here?"

"She's dead."

"Oh." Silence again.

"What happened to her?"

"She died in an explosion eleven years ago. The time machine they were working on exploded when she tried it.."

"I see...things aren't the way I remember here..." Gracie commented. She kept on trying to avoid his gaze.

This threw Layton off again. "What do you mean?"

"Well...do you believe in things like other dimensions and stuff?"

Layton raised an eyebrow. "I...do not see where this topic is going..."

"Do you believe that...that there's another time where she was alive? T-that you were living with her?" Gracie said, her voice was starting to quiver. He did not deserve all this hurt. She didn't expect things to be...so different.

Layton was quiet. He just stared at the girl in front of him, listening intently. It was hurting him to talk about her, knowing she might be the only one able to comfort him during these times.

"That you two have a wonderful family?...and that in a few months, I'm going to have a baby brother?" Gracie rambled on. She sniffled. She was on the verge of crying but she doesn't know why. Maybe it's because of the huge contrast in her place and this place.

"Gracie...what's wrong?" Layton asked, wiping a tear from Gracie's eyes.

"...You don't deserve this, Dad. You don't. Y-you're supposed to be with Mom...happy."She muttered, tears still falling from her eyes. "Why...? Why are things a lot different here?"

Layton was stunned with surprise. What did she just say?

Gracie sniffled again and wiped her tears. "I'm sorry, Professor..." She gave out a weak laugh. " It's just...it hurts to see you like this, knowing you're my father in another place...and I don't know what to do. I'm going back to my time soon and I know I'll feel guilty if I didn't even try to cheer you up when I had the chance..."

Gracie looked at her feet once more, expecting the familiar silence from the Professor. But she was surprised when she heard him chuckle. She looked up and saw the Professor chuckling but there were tears in his eyes.

"Professor?"

Layton's smile then turned into a frown. He covered his eyes with one hand, other hand on top of the table to support him up. He tried to stop the tears from coming but it was futile. He can't take it anymore. He felt warm hands hug him. He was ashamed of breaking down in front of Gracie but what can he do? He was just human like others.

"...I don't know what to do anymore..." Layton muttered. "Nothing's going right... I don't even know why this is happening to me..."

"Shh..."Gracie said, rubbing Layton's back. "It's alright, Professor." She wanted to cry,too , but just for this time, she'll be the strong one.

The tears stopped. Layton breathe heavily, trying to regain composure. "...I don't mind..." he muttered. He removed his hand from his face, now that he has calmed down a bit.

"Hm?"

"I don't mind...if you called me Dad...even for just one last time..." Layton said as he looked at Gracie. His eyes hurt, even if it was just a quick breakdown. He gave Gracie a genuine smile.

"Dad..." She muttered and hugged him tightly.

"It sounds good...to be called Dad." Layton said as he slowly returned Gracie's hug. "You know, I want to hear your part. Tell me something in that other future..."

"Well..."Gracie started and let go of Layton. He gestured her to sit back down. She sat back and started to tell about her family, her experiences, their happy times.

Layton was thankful for the distraction. He actually found it a bit funny that even if Gracie looked like Claire, she had his personality for most parts. Her stories stopped him from thinking about the things he has been through. He didn't regret spending the rest of the train ride just listening to Gracie. To him, it was the rest he deserved.

* * *

><p><strong>That was chapter 20! Any comment? Questions? Ask away! Also, Reviews are loved and Criticism is adored! Fun fact: I think this song suits the Professor... ( www. youtube watch?v=2_XJSEs3NFA) [remove the spaces and add a <em>.com<em> at the end of youtube...if it doesn't work then copy the **/watch?v=2_XJSEs3NFA and paste it at the end of youtube link]****


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21- Let it out

Luke sighed. He was sleeping a while ago when he heard Gracie leave. Probably to check on the Professor. He gazed outside the window as his tail flicked back and forth. He knows that the Professor couldn't have killed the man but...there were so many missing puzzle pieces and Layton wouldn't give him even a little hint. Usually, he would let him know about everything.

"What happened when I was gone, Professor?" he muttered, looking at the stars. He didn't like what was happening between him and the top-hatted man.

"Something wrong, Luke?" Toshiro asked. He yawned and stretched.

Luke glanced at his hat on top of the table. "No. Just...thinking."

"I don't believe you." Another voice said. Luke glanced and saw the Blythe was also awake now. "Now spill it. What's wrong?"

Luke sighed. "None of your business." He spat.

Blythe growled, hair standing on its ends. "Don't get me mad."

"Blythe, calm down." Toshiro said, going in between of the two.

"Why do you care?!" Luke shouted, facing the two. "You'll be back to normal soon and we'll never see each other again! What's the point of telling you guys then?! You won't be able to help me!"

"Woah...Luke..."Toshiro commented.

"Look! We're trying to help you!"Blythe shouted back.

"Help me how?!"

The two glared at each other for a moment. Luke then sighed and turned his back.

"Sorry...I'm not much of a good friend right now."

"Luke, you know it would be a lot easier for you if you would tell us what's wrong..."Toshiro said.

Blythe sighed. "C'mon...we just want you to let out those dark thoughts...It's making the atmosphere dull and heavy...I mean, we're supposed to be celebrating since we're almost done."

"It's just...a lot of things changed when I was gone. I was expecting that...when I come back, the Professor and I would have adventures like before. We would solve mysteries, catch bad guys and be gentlemen together. But now, he's hiding things from me. It's not the same. He usually tells me what his problems are." Luke said. It was better this way than bottling it all up, right?

"Well, maybe he has his reasons..." Toshiro said.

"After all, curiosity killed the cat." Blythe added and snickered at her own pun. Luke turned to face them.

"Haha. Very funny." He replied and rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, he'll probably tell you once the time is right." Toshiro said.

"Probably..."Luke said, still filled with doubt.

"Hey, Luke." Blythe called.

"Yes?"

"You feel angry, right?"Blythe asked.

"Blythe..."Toshiro said, knowing his friend is up to no good.

"Well, not angry...just...frustrated." Luke replied, tilting his head to the side.

"Well then, here's something to help you." Blythe said and walked around Luke.

"Blythe...what are you thinking...?" Toshiro asked.

"Well, we are cats right now, aren't we?" Blythe said.

"So?" the two male cats replied at the same time.

"Well, let's have some fun!" Blythe exclaimed and started to scratch the cushions on the chair they were sitting on.

"Hey! Don't do that! The Professor's probably going to pay for the mess we do again." Luke said and tried to pounce on Blythe but she gracefully hopped to the table. He soon heard a ripping sound and saw Toshiro hanging on the red curtains.

"Toshiro! Not you, too!"

"Sorry...couldn't help it..."Toshiro muttered and gave Luke a cheeky grin.

"Come on, Luke! Loosen up!" Blythe said as she jumped towards Luke. She bit his ear and ran away again.

"Catch me if you can!" Blythe shouted and stuck her tongue out.

"Oh, it's on!" Luke said and started to chase her.

"Don't leave me out!" Toshiro said and chased after the two as well. Maybe, Luke would let this pass by. He is a kid, after all. He deserves a break.

* * *

><p><strong>It seems both Luke and Layton are feeling bad. X3 Nya~ Not sure how many chapters left, maybe one or two, but it's so close to the end! Only a few updates left! Also, sorry for the short chapters X3 I'm trying to make up for the lost time.<strong>


	22. Chapter 22

**!Warning! This chapter is rated T. You'll know why.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 22- Hidden in the Shadows<p>

The train soon stopped at the familiar station, Felinery. Layton and Gracie went back to the cart to get the others, only to see a messed up room and three cats trying to look innocent.

Layton smiled and just shook his head. "We're here. Let's go." He said and left some money on the table. He just hoped that would be enough for the damage.

"Right." Luke said, now wearing his blue hat. It was big but still, it wasn't the same without it and he has already dealt with too many changes. They were greeted with hundreds of cats at the station, all waiting for them.

"Don't worry, people! You'll be returning back to normal in a few minutes!" Blythe announced to the villagers. The people cheered...err, meowed in happiness. They moved so that there would be a path for them to pass through.

They all went to the fountain, water glowing in the dark. Layton carefully took out the bottle in his pocket, seeing his paws didn't have the same strong grip as his normal hands. He bit the top off and let a drop pour to each of his paws. It slowly morphed back into his regular hands. He smiled.

"Toshiro, would you come here for a moment?" he called out. Toshiro walked towards him.

"Luke, would you do the honor...of removing the necklace?" Layton said and smiled at him.

Luke was fairly surprised but then, he gave a determined look. "Alright, Professor!" he exclaimed. He could feel that Layton was trying hard to make it up for him. The best thing he can do is appreciate and work with it.

He glanced at the necklace and saw that there was a lock with puzzle. "No wonder you can't remove this, Toshiro! There's a lock!"

Toshiro grunted. "No wonder I can't get it off...How was I supposed to remove a lock I can't even see?!" he exclaimed.

"Don't worry, Toshiro! This one is as good as solved!"Luke said and started to work on solving the lock with his claws. Layton just watched his apprentice. He could see that Luke had matured a little bit in the year they were separated.

With a click, the necklace fell to the ground.

"Layton's apprentice strikes again!" Luke exclaimed, using one of his catchphrases. He missed those times.

"Well done, my boy." Layton remarked. He picked the necklace up and gave it to Blythe.

"Blythe, would you mind carrying this to the cat statue?"

Blythe nodded and carried the necklace in her mouth. She jumped from ledge to ledge and finally reached the cat statue's neck. Layton then went to Gracie.

"Hold your palm up." He instructed. Gracie did so and Layton placed a drop of the antidote on each of her hands. Soon, it transformed back to normal. Layton then carried Gracie on his shoulders. He stepped on the edge of the statue, careful not to fall into the water.

"Now, Gracie. Put the necklace on the statue." Layton said. Blythe handed the necklace to Gracie. They nodded at each other.

"Let's finish this." Blythe told Gracie.

With another click, the necklace was put into place. Layton then poured the rest of the antidote into the water. He then put Gracie down and jumped into the water. He completely disappear underwater except for his right hand which held his hat high, trying not to get it wet.

"Professor!" the kids shouted. Layton stood up, dripping wet. He didn't expect the water to be a bit deep, seeing that it reached up to his waist. He smiled when he looked behind him and saw no tail. He reached up to his head with his other hand and felt no cat ears. He chuckled.

"The water's fine! Jump in!" he shouted. He wanted to ease some stress by having a little childish fun.

The kids looked at each other, surprised by Layton's actions. They were interrupted when Blythe shouted, "Last one in is a rotten egg!", and jumped into the water.

"No fair!" Luke shouted and ran to the fountain as well. Soon, there were a lot of cats and half-cats jumping into the fountain.

"Calm down, everybody! There's not enough room for everyone to go at the same time!" Layton announced. He went out of the fountain, seeing he had turned completely normal.

"Everyone who has turned back to normal, please leave the fountain so that the others may have a turn!" Gracie shouted, trying to help Layton put some order. Soon, most of the villagers had turned back to normal. Everybody was cheering, hugging each other, laughing and pretty much having fun. Some people went to their homes and came back with towels and clothes for everyone. Standing in the middle of the square while dripping wet on a cold evening wasn't really good for the health.

"I'm a boy! I'm a real boy!" Toshiro shouted, earning a laugh from Blythe.

"Didn't know you had a sense of humor deep inside of you, Toshiro." Blythe commented and laughed.

"Well, you're not the only joker and troublemaker here." Toshiro said, showing a bit of his mischievous side. He started to laugh as well. "I'm just happy we're back to normal."

"Me, too...even if I didn't mind turning into a cat." Blythe said. They continued on playing in the fountain, not noticing that Luke had left.

Luke thanked the villager who gave him a towel and wrapped it around him. He saw Gracie head towards the fountain to turn back to normal, leaving the top-hatted man alone. He looked at the Professor and noticed him looking around. He wanted to ask him if he was looking for someone but he bet that he'll just give him another vague answer. Well, it was worth a shot.

"Are you looking for someone, Professor?" he asked. To his surprise, Layton nodded.

" Two detectives, to be exact. But with this crowd, I doubt I'll find them." He replied, surprising Luke even more. Layton actually answered his question and with a clear answer, too.

"Why?" Luke asked.

"I just need to, my boy." Layton answered.

Luke sighed. Typical. _'Note to self: Don't push your luck too hard when asking the Professor...'_ he thought.

"Anyway, let's all go back to our room in the inn. I bet a warm cup of tea would be great right now."Layton said and went to the other kids to call them.

Luke gave a sad smile after Layton left. He was still keeping things from him but at least, he answered this time. It was a start...and a good start, nonetheless.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

While people celebrated with joy after turning back to normal, a person hidden in the shadows smirked. The person held a wriggling bag in his hands. He tied the opening up, ensuring that anything inside won't be able to escape.

He gripped the end tightly and swung the bag against the wall. The thing inside the bag stopped wriggling. He then proceeded to take out a knife from his pocket. He slowly raised it up and stabbed the bag. Blood spurted out and stained the person but he did not care. He stabbed it again...and again...and again...

Satisfied, he stepped back. The walls and the ground were covered in blood. Blood was dripping from the bag. The knife was now covered in blood. His hands were covered in blood. But even so, he just smirked and glanced at the square, where everybody was having fun. In his line of sight was a familiar top-hatted man.

"Two down...One to go..." he muttered and fled into the night.

* * *

><p><strong>That was chapter 22! Everybody's back to normal! Hooray! But wait! Who was that person in the shadows? And is he after the Professor? When will you guys get the answer? Why am I asking you these questions? Tune in to chapter 23! Nya~ *Hint: He's not a he* [not helpful but still a hint]<strong>


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23- Yesterday's a Dream, Today's a Nightmare

Professor Layton yawned and stretched, the blanket on him shuffled a little bit. He blinked a couple of times and saw he was sitting on a chair. Right. He probably fell asleep while sitting on it last night. He smiled a little at the memory of last night's chaos. Toshiro and Blythe tried to convince their parents of staying over in their room and have a sleep-over. Toshiro easily followed his parents home after they said no while Blythe...well, let's just say her parents had to use a bit of threat. Apparently, she couldn't last an hour in her room without her phone and computer.

After that part, Luke proposed to stay up all night, which Gracie agreed to. And with much persuasion, Layton sighed and agreed as well. Even after all the events that day, the two still had the energy to play around. They gave each other puzzles, told jokes and threw pillows around. It was a bit surprising and embarrassing to Layton but he admitted to himself that he had fun that night. The most fun after a long time. The last thing he remembered was having a contest with Luke and Gracie to see who can stay awake longer. He couldn't remember who won, though. Now that he thought about it, he didn't have a blanket when he sat there. He glanced at the two kids, sleeping peacefully and chuckled.

'_I guess I lost that contest..' _he thought to himself. He took the blanket and stood up. He folded it neatly and placed it on the chair. He glanced at the clock and saw it was still early in the morning.

'_Hmm...I guess I'll buy some breakfast for us. Some bread and tea would suffice.'_ He thought and wrote down a note for Luke and Gracie, telling them that he went out to buy some bread. He silently closed the door behind him as he left.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

After asking for a few directions and solving the puzzles the villagers gave him, he finally reached the bakery. The scent of freshly baked bread was soothing, perfect for the morning. The bell chimed when he opened the door and went in. There were a couple of people inside, taking a look at the goods.

"Good morning and welcome!" the baker in the shop greeted.

"Good morning." Layton greeted back and tipped his hat. He took a look at the different assortments of bread on the display counter. After much deliberation, he decided to buy some biscuits and a loaf of bread. Just as he received his order, he overheard two ladies talking to each other.

"I saw it! It was really a horrid sight!" the lady wearing a green dress exclaimed.

"I agree. There was blood everywhere! And, oh god! The stench!" the lady in blue replied.

After hearing the word 'blood', Layton couldn't help but ask. "Pardon me. I don't mean to pry into your conversation but you mentioned something about blood...Is there a problem?" he asked as he approached the two.

"Oh, we don't mind. It's just about the horrible scene in the alleyway. Some person killed two cats and left them inside a bloody bag. I swear, even just thinking of it sends a chill down my spine." The lady in blue said, shivering a bit.

"...And to think most of us were cats yesterday! What if they were villagers, too?!" the other added.

Layton noted about this and suddenly, it hit him.

'_Two detectives went missing after trying to solve a mystery...'_

'_Do you know what happened to those detectives who went missing?' Lizzy said. 'I turned them into cats...'_

'_Some person killed two cats and left them inside a bloody bag...'_

_And to add the final piece,Layton thought to himself, _

_._

_._

'_I was working with two detectives on that case...'_

Layton's eyes widened at the realization."Oh my...Excuse me, but where is this alleyway?" he asked, a bit worried.

"Oh, it's just by the square. Nobody must have noticed it last night with all the commotion." the green lady answered.

"And it was dark, too." the other added.

"I see. Thank you." Layton said and quickly left.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Even if he was still a bit far from the alley, he could smell a faint scent of blood. There were a few curious people there but they left immediately. There was nothing they could do after all. Once the place was clear, Layton went to examine the scene.

The sight was disturbing, to say the least. There were plenty of blood on the walls and on the ground. The stench was horrible. He covered his nose, trying not to vomit. He slowly approached the open bag and saw two cats in it. Their bodies were filled with stab wounds. Layton stepped back a little bit, repulsed by the sight. He glanced at the side and saw an empty bucket. He glanced back at the fountain and thought of something. He put away the bread he had bought on a bench. He picked the bucket up and filled it with the fountain's water. He hoped that it would work but a small part of him was wishing that it won't.

He poured the water on the bodies of the cats. Layton stepped back and watched as the bag ripped open, not able to contain the transforming bodies. He stared at the bodies, mouth wide open. Two familiar faces had greeted him after the transformation and it wasn't a friendly sight. He didn't know what to do so he stood there, frozen in terror, shock and surprise. He hadn't notice but a group of people had started to surround him.

"Oh god!", "There's been a murder!", "Somebody call the authorities!"

Even with the people shouting all around him, he stood there. "No...This can't be happening... This can't be happening..." Layton muttered, hoping that this was all just a nightmare and he'll wake up on the chair again but he wasn't dreaming. Soon enough, some police had arrived. One approached him and asked him some questions, shaking Layton out of his trance. It only took a few minutes. After that, he picked up the bread he had left on the bench for a while and went back to the inn.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Layton opened the door to their room. He was surprised to see that tea has already been prepared and the table was set.

"Welcome back!" Gracie greeted and giggled.

"You must've been really tired last night, Professor! You fell asleep immediately and the contest wasn't even heated up yet!" Luke said and smiled at the Professor.

Layton did his best to muster up a smile. Wouldn't want the kids to have a bad day today as well. "Is that tea I smell?" He mentally sighed in relief as the children seemed not to notice.

Gracie nodded. "It's the Layton Elixir! Luke told me which ingredients to use."

"We used some of the ingredients in you suitcase, Professor. I hope you don't mind." Luke said.

"I don't mind, my boy. Now, let's sit down and have breakfast." Layton said and they all sat down on the table. He placed the loaf of bread and the biscuits on the table. They ate silently and enjoyed each other's company.

"More tea, Professor?" Gracie asked.

"I'll be delighted." Layton replied. When Gracie grabbed the teapot, she started glowing.

"...Oh no..." Gracie muttered, letting go of the teapot in the process. The teapot crashed to the floor, spilling the tea.

"Gracie..."Luke muttered, feeling sorry for Gracie. Layton looked at the girl with solemn eyes.

"It's too soon..."Gracie muttered, staring at her hands. Tears started to form in her eyes.

"It's alright, Gracie." Layton said as he stood up. Gracie ran to the Professor and hugged him. She started sobbing.

"I don't want to go yet..." she said between sobs.

"Gracie...they're probably worried...I know I would be..."Layton said and smiled at the girl.

Gracie let go of the top-hatted man and wiped her tears .She smiled a little. "Of course, you would know, Professor..."

"Gracie...I..."Luke piped in. He couldn't let his friend go without even saying something. "I love me some llamas..." he said, recalling the joke he made when they were at the fountain and the case was just starting.

Gracie giggled. "Oh, Luke...Don't forget to tell Blythe and Toshiro I said goodbye."

Luke nodded and smiled. "Thank you for your help, Gracie. I'm sorry for being rude to you before..."

"I already forgave you, didn't I?" Gracie said.

"Still...I.."Luke started but was interuppted by Gracie. She kissed him on the cheek and giggled.

"If you only knew about my time..." Gracie said. Luke's face became red.

"Hey!"

Layton cleared his throat, earning the attention of the two. Luke looked away, embarrassed. Gracie giggled again. She then started to glow brighter. She hugged the Professor again for the last time.

"I hope you get your better future soon..." she said.

"I hope so, as well..."Layton replied and gave her a sad smile.

"Hey! Don't forget about me!" Luke exclaimed and joined the hug as well. They just hugged each other for a moment until a bright light encompassed them all.

"Goodbye...and thank you..." Gracie's voice echoed in the room, even after the light had faded.

"I still can't believe that she's from another dimension, Professor..."Luke said.

"Luke, could you clean the mess up? I need to pack our things up." Layton said, not bothering to comment about Luke's statement.

"Why the rush, Professor? I thought we were going to stay for a day or two...to relax..."Luke asked, expecting the answer to be related to his job of being a professor at a university...or Flora. But he was surprised when the Professor replied to him in a serious tone.

"We're going to be in much danger if we stay longer here."

At that exact moment, the door flew open. Blythe ran inside followed by Toshiro.

"Professor! Have you heard the news?!" Blythe shouted.

"What news?" Luke asked.

"There was a murder!" Toshiro exclaimed. "Rumors say it might have happened last night!"

"What?!" Luke shouted.

Layton nodded grimly. "Yes...I was at the scene a while ago."

"What?!" Luke shouted again. "And you didn't tell us, Professor?!"

The top-hatted man sighed. "I was afraid it would ruin the morning for the both of you."

Luke sighed, exasperated.

"Wait...Where's Gracie?" Toshiro asked, noticing that the girl wasn't anywhere in the room.

"She left a while ago." Luke simply said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Without even saying goodbye?!" Blythe asked.

"It was sudden. She had to go immediately. But she told me to tell you both that she said goodbye..." Luke explained.

There was a few moment of silence. Layton closed his eyes and thought deeply. Luke still had his arms across his chest and the two stood there, looking at the mentor and apprentice.

"So...are you going to help in this one, too, Professor?" Blythe asked.

Layton sighed and shook his head. "Sadly, we have to go back to London. There are some things there that need to be attended." _'Plus, I'm too involved in this...Helping with the case would put Luke, Flora and I in great danger...'_ he added but kept that to himself.

"You're leaving today?" Toshiro asked.

Layton nodded. "We'll just pack up and head to the station immediately. But not without saying our farewells first, of course."

"I see. Well, let's escort them, Toshiro!" Blythe exclaimed.

Toshiro nodded. After Luke and Layton had packed their things up and cleaned the place a bit, they all headed towards the station. Just in time for the train.

"Well, take care, you two!" Blythe shouted as Luke and Layton boarded the train, with tickets of course.

"Both of you, too!" Luke shouted back. When they arrived at their cart, Luke turned to the Professor.

"You got a lot of explaining to do, Professor..."

* * *

><p><strong>And that was chapter 23~ I'm not sure what chapter this story will end, but it's near. [How many times have I said that? XP] Just stay tuned.<strong>


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24- Duty of a Gentleman

The train ride back was rough. The atmoshpere in the cart was heavy. Both Layton and Luke were silent. Just when they thought the tension between them was gone. Luke was starting to get frustrated at the Professor.

Layton sighed. He looked around for a moment, earning a confused look from Luke. "It seems safe enough..."he muttered.

"What do you mean, Professor?"

"Luke, I need you to understand. Someone is after me." Layton said.

Luke's eyes widened. He was finally getting the explanation he wanted. "Who?"

"I'm not sure...but the murder victims were the detectives I worked with during a case. It is possible that someone is eliminating the people from the last day of the case and unfortunately, I'm one of those people."

"That's horrible!" Luke exclaimed.

Layton nodded. "Luke...I had not killed anybody. What happened during that day was an accident..."

"I believe you, Professor." Luke said.

Layton smiled. At least, he knew that the boy still had a bit of trust in him. "I don't want to tell you much about the case. But I'll give you a brief summary."

Luke nodded and listened intently to what Layton was about to say next. He was excited deep inside. What was it that happened while he was gone? He's going to finally know the answer to that.

"During the last day of the case, something unfortunate happened. A fire started and Kaito Kid died in that fire." Layton told Luke, not yet bothering about the other details.

"Lizzy's father, right?"

Layton nodded. "It was an accident that I caused.I'm not quite sure but I might have accidentally bumped into a table and sent the lamp crashing to the floor." He said as he looked down, the brim of his hat hiding his eyes. "But there was something about that time that kept on puzzling me."

"What was it, Professor?"

"Someone else was there. I never managed to find out who the person was nor if they survived the fire. I just have a feeling that this is all connected somehow..." Layton explained.

"Is that your famous intuition acting up again, Professor?" Luke asked and smiled.

Layton chuckled. "My, I never thought I'd missed that phrase of yours."

"I'm really sorry, Professor...for the way I acted." Luke apologized.

"Apology accepted, my boy." Layton said. But he turned serious once again.

"Luke...you do understand that being with me right now is dangerous, right?"

"Yes...So?"Luke asked but knew where this conversation was going. "Professor, you can't possibly be thinking..."

"Luke, you're only fourteen. If being with me would ensure you a short life...I'd rather you return to your parents immediately."

"And let you face danger alone?! I'm not going to allow that!" Luke shouted and stood up. "And plus, Flora's staying with you so why can't I?!"

"Flora's not going to stay much longer. I'm going to contact Katia and see if she can take Flora in until it's safe to come back. If not, I'll see if she can come with you to Misthallery. And Luke, a true gentleman doesn't let his friends get hurt." Layton reasoned.

"And I'm just doing what a gentleman does!"

"Luke..."Layton started but was interrupted.

"We've gone through a lot of dangerous times! I'm still alive and fine right now, aren't I?!"

"Luke..."

"And what if you can't protect yourself? What if you get killed?!" Luke's voice started to quiver. The thought of the Professor getting killed was too much, he can't bear it.

"Luke..."Layton repeated once more in a deeper and much serious tone.

"What if there's no one else there to help you?! What if-"

"Luke, listen to me!"Layton shouted and stood up. He gripped both of Luke's shoulders. Luke stared at him, surprised and scared. This was the first time he had ever shouted in anger at him.

"This is not like the other times! Furthermore, I had already put you through a lot of danger in the past! What if the time comes that I won't be able to save you?!"

Luke was silent, just staring at the face of his mentor. It had never occured to him since he was usually there at the end, ready to save the day.

"I won't be able to forgive myself if something worse happens to you." Layton said, a bit calmer. He let go of Luke's shoulders and sat down with a sigh.

Luke silently sat down. He looked at his feet, mind in deep thought. He wasn't entirely sure on what he's thinking. It was all jumbled up and confusing. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the Professor mutter something.

"Did you say something, Professor?"

"A month...That's the longest you and Flora can stay." Layton said and looked outside to see the station. They had arrived back in London. He stood up and carried his suitcase.

"Alright, Professor..."Luke said and stood up as well. Deep inside, he was thankful for the extra time. He was going to make the best of it for sure.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Professor! You're back!" Flora exclaimed as the top-hatted man entered the house, followed by the blue-hatted apprentice. She ran to the Professor and hugged him.

"Did you enjoy your stay at your friend's house?" Layton asked as he smiled at the girl.

Luke went to the living room and plopped down on the couch. He sighed. "So tired..."

Flora nodded. "It was fun! How about you, Professor? How was the case?"

"It was tiring, to say the least." Layton replied, glancing at Luke. "Speaking of the case, I need to talk to you, Flora." He added. He went to the living room and gestured Flora to follow.

Flora followed and sat in a chair. Layton sat in the chair opposite to hers. Luke, seeing that this was a very important discussion, sat up as well.

"What is it, Professor?"

"We've only got a month left to stay here, Flora." Luke said, earning a confused look from Flora.

"What?"

"Someone is after me, Flora. It's not safe to be here with me anymore." Layton explained.

"But...where will I go?" Flora asked.

"Either you go and stay with Katia in Dropstone or go with Luke back to Misthallery. It's for your safety."

Luke's face clearly showed his displeasure. But even if he didn't want to go, Layton's decision was final.

"It's alright, Professor..." Flora said with a sad tone. "I'd rather go with Luke, though."

Layton nodded. "We only have a month left together, so we should make the best out of it." He said and smiled.

"Right!" Luke exclaimed.

Flora giggled at Luke's energy. "Hold on. I'll make some tea." She said and went to the kitchen.

"...I'll make sure she doesn't cook something inedible..."Luke said and followed Flora to the kitchen.

Layton watched the two leave, a sad smile on his face. He didn't really want to send the two away by force but he can't let them stay and get harmed. He's the adult and he should be responsible for keeping them safe. He might even have to severe their connections, just to be sure that no one can track where he or his love ones are. He might not like the idea of being alone for a long time but he has to, for the sake of others.

* * *

><p><strong>And that's chapter 24! Next chapter is the last! (Aww! D: ) But don't worry! There's a sequel! Just wait...A true gentleman is patient, after all XP. <strong>


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25- Soon

A girl with raven hair walked down a dark corridor. At the end was a door, locked with a passcode. She easily entered the code and the door opened, revealing a man watching various computer screen.

The girl approached the man and knelt on one knee. She placed a hand her chest, awaiting instructions.

"Report." The man said in a gruff voice.

"Target one and two succesfully eliminated. Target three's location has been identified. Target four's whereabouts are unknown." The girl replied.

"Good. Somehow, you made progress."the man said, turning to face the girl.

The girl stood up and smirked. "I am, after all, one of the most skilled assassins in this organization."

"Don't get too cocky. Your mission isn't done yet."

"I know." The girl replied, returning back into her serious mode. "What are my next instructions?"

"Watch Target three closely. Wait until Target four appears before taking actions. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" the girl replied and saluted. "Any further instructions?"

"...You may kill them any way you want to."

The girl smirked. "Duly noted."

**To be continued...**

* * *

><p><strong>And that marks the end of this story! I hope you enjoyed reading this! Thank you to all of those who stuck with me and this story and to those who reviewed as well! Fear not though, there's a sequel! Like I said many times before XP<strong>

**Stay alert for the new story!**


	26. SPECIAL CHAPTER

**This is a bunch of jokes we(roleplayers) made during the roleplay of this story. Hope you guys enjoy it! I'm sorry for the other roleplayers who weren't mentioned...I forgot and I don't have the original copy anymore ^^;;**

**Warning! May get confusing.**

* * *

><p>Special Chapter!<p>

Layton was sitting on a chair in front of a round table. He was sipping his tea inside a room and just enjoying the moment. Luke then bursted in, along with Clive.

"Hey! Are you seriously going to show those!?" Luke shouted as he tried to snatch the disc in Clive's hand.

Clive stuck his tongue out. He raised his hand up. "You don't even have much funny scenes!"

Luke grunted. Clive was a lot taller than him. How the heck would he be able to reach the disc now?! "Still! C'mon, Clive!"

"Nope." Clive replied and laughed.

Luke grunted again and decided to stop. He plopped down the couch and sighed. Soon, a lot of other people entered the room. There was Flora, Lizzy, Gracie, Toshiro, and Blythe. Then, a couple of other people entered.

There was a girl with short blond hair, bangs all on one side. She was flat-chested and wore a black jacket. She wore a pair of red fox ears. She was holding a huge bucket of popcorn.

"Hey Stardust! Call the others! Clive's about to show the deleted scenes!" the blond haired girl called out.

"Cool! Be right there, foxface!" a voice shouted back. Soon, a brown haired girl entered, followed by several more people.

"Are we going to all fit in this room?" Toshiro asked.

"No worries. The floor is big enough for everyone." Foxface replied and sat down on the floor, right in front of the television. Everybody looked for a comfortable position and soon, everything and everybody was in place.

"Alright! Let's watch this then!" Clive exclaimed as he popped the disc in the video player.

"And now...to watch the behind the scenes!" Foxface exclaimed.

"Shhh!" Everybody glared at the girl, who covered her mouth.

"Sorry..." Foxface whispered and chuckled.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 1: Receiving the letter...the original scene (chapter 1):

Luke slammed the door open. "PROFESO-...Professor?" Luke called out, seeing the man had fallen asleep.

Layton's face was covered by the puzzle book. Luke went beside him and shook him awake.

"Psst...Professor! We're filming already!" Luke whispered.

"Huh? What?" Layton said as he awoke, the book falling to the floor with a thud. Luke bit his lip.

"What's wrong?" Layton asked as the boy backed away and covered his mouth.

Luke couldn't contain it anymore and laughed out loud. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! That look suits you, Professor!" he kidded.

The camera then zooms in at the Professor's face, showing a devilishly handsome moustache and monocle drawn on his face with a black sharpie.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Ah, the wonders of pranking sleeping people..."Clive said and chuckled as he remembered that part.

"...I'm just thankful it was erasable..."Layton commmented.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 2: Lizzy waiting for the train to arrive...(Chapter 2)

"Eleven O'clock…Only one hour left until he comes." Lizzy muttered to herself and put the watch back to her pocket.

A huge gust of wind blew and sent the newspaper right at Lizzy's face.

"Hey! What gives?!" Lizzy shouted as she took the newspaper off of her face.

"Sorry!" Foxface shouted and laughed.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 3: The door's locked (chapter 2 Layton,Gracie and Luke scene)

"I have a feeling this will be quite an adventure, Luke." Layton said and sipped the tea he ordered a while ago.

Thump.

"...Wasn't that supposed to be Gracie...?"Layton asked as he stared at the door, still closed.

"Sorry! I locked it a while ago!" Luke said and opened it. Gracie was on the floor.

"...Ow..." was the only reply that came from her.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"That really hurted, you know?" Gracie said.

"Sorry..."Luke said and gave her a cheeky grin.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 4: Fountain (Chapter 4)

The next scene was Luke and Gracie sitting at the fountain.

Luke was about to say his line, 'I love me some llamas' when Blythe started to sing.

"Luke and Gracie, sitting on a fountain, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Blythe! Come back here!" Luke shouted, now beet red. He ran after her and they all laughed.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Extra scene:

Lizzy was walking towards the fountain, just looking at the fountain. She suddenly tripped and fell into the fountain's water.

"It's ok! It's just wate—"Lizzy said when she felt something slimy brush against her hand. A shiver ran down her spine.

"FFFIIIIIIISSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH!" Lizzy shouted and ran out of the fountain in a blink of an eye. Soon, she disappeared in a distance.

"...Wow...Didn't really expect her to run that far." A blond man said, standing beside Clive. The blond man and Clive high-fived.

"You aren't supposed to be here yet, though." Clive said.

"I know..." the blond man said and left.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 5: One hell of a magician (Chapter 8)

"Well I shall say one thing...I am simply one heck of a magician." The masked person said, who was really Lizzy wearing a mask and the Kaito Kid costume.

"Sebastian* wannabe!" Toshiro shouted at the sidelines.** *Sebastian from Kuroshitsuji**

"Shut up! You're ruining my moment!" Lizzy shouted back. Luke laughed and went to the side.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 6: Stupid Gun (Chapter 8)

"Well I shall say one thing...I am simply one heck of a magician." Lizzy repeated and pulled the trigger of the gun...only no cards went out.

"What the hell is wrong with this thing?!" Lizzy shouted as she looked into the barrel, only to have flour to blast at her face.

"Agh!" Lizzy shouted at frustration. "I'm done...I'm done...I'm not going to do this anymore!"

Luke laughed. "Oh puzzles why..."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 6: Smoke (Chapter 14)

Bang! Smoke started to pour out of the gun Lizzy was holding. When the smoke cleared, Lizzy was still in the same position, looking around.

"Why are you still there? You were supposed to run." Clive said.

"Sorry. Forgot where to run." Lizzy said and gave out a weak chuckle. She scratched the back of her head as Clive faceplamed.

"My eyes! It stings!" Luke suddenly shouted at the background, Layton and Gracie trying to help him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Luke facepalmed as he watched the scene again. "That was so embarrassing ."he said.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Take 7: Masks hurt (Chapter 16)

Lizzy took her mask off and crushed it in her hands. A few moments later, a red liquid was dripping from her hands.

"Owowowowowowowowow!"Lizzy started to shake her hand up and down, trying to remove the sting of the wounds.

"...Somebody get the first aid kit..."Clive said as Gracie silently passed the medic kit to Clive.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The video then faded into credits.

"Ah...That was great!" Flora said and giggled. "Poor Luke..."

Luke pouted. "The smoke really did stung my eyes..." he muttered under his breath.

"Well, I guess that was a good finale for this story, right?" Foxface said, pulling out a pocket-sized notebook and a pen from her pocket.

"Indeed...and as a story ends, another begins." Layton said.

"True that." Clive said, taking the disc out of the player.

"Well, foxface...you should get on to writing!" Stardust said.

"Count on it!" Foxface said and everybody celebrated at the success of the first story.

* * *

><p><strong>New story is up! :D Professor Layton and the Halloween Caper! I hope you enjoy that story as well X3<strong>


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